The North West London Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee met on Thursday 19 March 2026 to discuss several key health service matters across the region. Scheduled topics included a planned temporary move of specialist children's heart, lung, and critical care inpatient services, transforming a specialist learning disability CAMHS ward, and updates on cancer prevention and early diagnosis. The committee also reviewed its recommendations tracker and work programme.

Planned Temporary Move of Specialist Children's Heart, Lung, and Critical Care Inpatient Services

A significant portion of the meeting was dedicated to discussing the planned temporary move of specialist children's heart, lung, and critical care inpatient services, currently provided by Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust (GSTT). The report pack indicated that this move is driven by clinical risk escalation regarding the safety and sustainability of the paediatric cardiac surgical service. The proposal is to consolidate all paediatric heart and lung inpatient services and day cases requiring sedation at the Evelina London Children's Hospital and St Thomas' Hospital site. This consolidation is deemed essential to meet mandated national Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) standards and to address concerns about the current 1:2.5 on-call rota for cardiac surgeons, which is considered unsustainable beyond April 2026.

The report highlighted that outpatient clinics, day-case procedures not requiring anaesthetic or sedation, outpatient imaging, and research would continue at existing sites. The relocation of cardiac surgery necessitates the temporary move of paediatric respiratory inpatients due to their reliance on the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) and other co-located specialist paediatric services, which would no longer be viable at the Royal Brompton Hospital site after the cardiac surgery move. The report detailed the dependency of the Royal Brompton Hospital's PICU on the cardiac surgical programme, stating that without it, the unit would become clinically unsustainable and unsafe. World-leading respiratory sub-services, including Cystic Fibrosis (CF), Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia (PCD), Severe Asthma, Long-Term Ventilation (LTV) and Sleep Medicine, and Rare Lung Disease and Thoracic Surgery, are also scheduled to transfer. The report outlined the planned capacity at the Evelina London and St Thomas' campus, including the conversion of Sky Ward into a dedicated respiratory unit and the integration of the Royal Brompton PICU team. The move, approved by NHS England, is intended as a temporary measure until a formal, commissioner-led long-term options appraisal and service reconfiguration process is completed.

Transforming the Crystal House Specialist LD CAMHS Ward

The committee was scheduled to consider proposals for transforming the Crystal House specialist learning disability (LD) Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) ward. The report indicated that the current inpatient model at Crystal House is no longer meeting the needs of patients or aligning with national priorities and upcoming legislation for the care of children and young people with learning disabilities. The report highlighted that the 5-bed specialist unit has a high annual running cost of over £2.9 million, with very low patient admissions – only 23 in six years, of which 11 were from North West London. The unit is often understaffed relative to its commissioned capacity and has experienced periods of being completely empty.

The proposed changes are driven by shifts in national policy, including the Mental Health Act, which will focus detention criteria on mental illness, potentially excluding many young people with learning disabilities. The NHS 10-year plan mandates a reduction in admissions and length of stay for individuals with learning disabilities. The report suggested that admissions are frequently crisis-driven rather than clinically indicated, causing trauma to young people and their families. A new model of care is being developed, focusing on earlier, community-based support to prevent escalation and reduce costly admissions. This new model aims to reach significantly more children and young people, providing care in familiar community settings to build trust and improve long-term outcomes. The report detailed how the significant cost of the current Crystal House service would be reinvested into this new CAMHS pathway, supporting a far greater number of children and young people. The proposed approach for admissions, if required, would involve local General Adolescent Units (GAU) with appropriate adjustments and exceptional packages of care, with admissions being focused, goal-oriented, and as brief as clinically possible. Engagement activities conducted between summer 2024 and spring 2025 indicated a strong preference for community-based support, continuity of care, and a recognition of the gap in North West London services, despite Crystal House being valued but underused. The next steps outlined included discharging the current patient by the end of March, implementing a transitional model in April 2026, and fully embedding the new model by October 2026.

Cancer Prevention and Early Diagnosis Across North West London

The committee was scheduled to receive an update on cancer prevention and early diagnosis initiatives across North West London. While the detailed report was to follow, the inclusion of this item on the agenda suggests a focus on strategies and programmes aimed at reducing cancer incidence and improving the detection of cancer at earlier, more treatable stages within the region.

North West London JHOSC Recommendations Tracker

The committee was due to review the North West London JHOSC Recommendations Tracker. This document provides an overview of scrutiny recommendations made in previous municipal years (2023/24, 2024/25) and the current year (2025/26), tracking the responses and status of actions taken by NHS bodies. The tracker allows the committee to maintain oversight of the implementation of its recommendations and information requests.

North West London JHOSC 2025/26 Work Programme

The committee was scheduled to note the North West London JHOSC 2025/26 Work Programme. This programme outlines the key health policy areas and decisions the committee plans to review throughout the municipal year. The work programme is designed to be flexible, allowing for the inclusion of emerging issues. The report indicated that the planned temporary move of specialist children's services and the transformation of the Crystal House CAMHS ward had been added to the work programme for the 19 March 2026 meeting. Items such as Digital Health, Data Use, AI and Digital Inclusion and Weight Loss Drug Supply and Roll Out were deferred to the 2026/27 municipal year. The meeting venue was also confirmed to be hosted by the London Borough of Brent.