Severn Valley

Severn Valley Division elects one Councillor.

Candidates:
Division Name Party Survey
Severn Valley BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn  
Severn Valley SMITH, Fred LD  
Severn Valley WILD, Claire Margaret Con (Did not respond)
1. Will you support sufficient funding to enable all Shropshire’s Public Health programmes to continue, and to allow the development and implementation of new programmes to improve the health of Shropshire people?

Name Party Q1
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn Yes
SMITH, Fred LD Yes
Comments and explanations:

Name Party Comment1
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn I think public health is crucial for the future of the health service locally and nationally. Public health is now the responsibility of the local authority and I’m very disappointed with the lack of vision and action shown by public health managers locally – this is not just about funding. In particular they should be doing much more to support and enable walking and cycling as part of peoples’ everyday lives. Physical activity is vital to our physical and mental health, and lack of it is the biggest health challenge we face today, storing up huge and unmanageable health problems for the future. Active travel is possible for almost everyone at least some of the time and should be a publci health priority.
2. Will you support sufficient funding for health visiting in Shropshire to ensure the full implementation of NHS England’s recommended model: ‘The universal health visitor reviews’ – five mandated reviews?

Name Party Q2
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn Yes
SMITH, Fred LD Yes
Comments and explanations:

Name Party Comment2
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn Despite the current crisis in hospitals, we urgently need to be talking about and strengthening healthcare in the community as well
3. Will you support Shropshire Council commissioning and subsidising public transport sufficient to enable all patients without their own transport to access health services reliably?

Name Party Q3
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn Unsure
SMITH, Fred LD Yes
Comments and explanations:

Name Party Comment3
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn I would like to see further consideration of this. I’m well aware that there is inadequate public transport to the RSH but am not sure that commissioning public transport by Shropshire Council – is the best way to ensure proper access to health services of all kinds. I’d like to see more creative – properly funded of course – solutions.
4. Will you support the funding of Healthwatch at a level sufficient to fully exercise its statutory role, and do you agree that it should be able to determine its own programmes of work independent of any Council veto?

Name Party Q4
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn Yes
SMITH, Fred LD Yes
Comments and explanations: None
5. Do you agree that the Health and Wellbeing Board should only apply the Better Care Fund on programmes that will improve health and wellbeing, rather than transferring the cost of provision from the NHS to the Council, voluntary organisations, and individual patients?

Name Party Q5
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn Yes
SMITH, Fred LD Unsure
Comments and explanations: None
6. Will you vote against endorsement of the current Shropshire Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP) in which Shropshire Council is a partner?

Name Party Q6
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn Yes
SMITH, Fred LD Unsure
Comments and explanations: None
7. Will you vote against endorsement of future versions of the STP if it does not meet the following red lines: (a) no reduction of provision or access to in-County secondary care, including emergency care; (b) no reduction of hospital beds in either RSH or PRH unless bed occupancy rates have been running at 85% consistently for 12 months; (c) no reduction in acute/secondary care services that are being transferred to the community without high quality evidence based community provision being in place, fully operational, and proven to be successful; (d) no reduction in beds and service provision at our community hospitals; (e) a real increase in community mental health provision; (f) the continued provision of accessible Midwife-Led Maternity Units, in line with national guidance and with no reduction in current services; (g) a real improvement in ambulance provision to ensure NHS England target response times can be met across the County; (h) no increase in the fragmentation or privatisation of services?
Name Party Q7
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn Yes
SMITH, Fred LD Yes
Comments and explanations:

Name Party Comment7
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn The Green Party is completely opposed to the privatisation of the NHS and Caroline Lucas our MP has introduced a bill in parliament which woud reverse this.
8. If a member of the Health and Adult Social Care Scrutiny Committee, or the Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee, will you ensure that there is full public consultation on any proposed changes to NHS service that might negatively impact any patients, and if such proposals are subsequently agreed by the relevant NHS body, will you vote to refer the proposals to the Secretary of State for Health?

Name Party Q8
BULLARD, Emma Catherine Mary Grn Yes
SMITH, Fred LD Yes
Comments and explanations: None