The Health Scrutiny Sub-committee will receive the outcome report from the Maternity Scrutiny Task and Finish Group, along with an update on Primary Care access. An update from the Director of Public Health and Commissioning on Health Protection was also scheduled for discussion, along with updates from members involved with several other committees and organisations.

Maternity Scrutiny Task and Finish Group Outcome Report

The sub-committee was scheduled to receive the outcome report from the Maternity Scrutiny Task and Finish Group. The report is very lengthy, but its stated purpose is to scrutinise the changes to maternity services since the closure of the King George Hospital Maternity Unit in 2013. It contains a huge amount of data, including local and national birth statistics, details of many relevant pieces of legislation and research, and the results of a survey that the committee commissioned on residents' experiences of maternity services in the borough. The survey asked residents to list the three most important factors in their choice of where to give birth. Closeness to home was identified as most important by 1.35 points, with 1.60 points for Good Safety Standards, and 1.07 for Availability of maternity healthcare professionals. The availability of maternity healthcare professionals was also a key concern highlighted by the survey respondents:

Most important - Availability of maternity healthcare professionals - There were 41 responses to this part of the question.

The report goes on to make a series of recommendations for actions that the council and its partners can take to improve maternity care in the borough, in particular focusing on the issue of access to services following the closure of the unit at King George Hospital:

Recommendations of the Redbridge Maternity Scrutiny Task and Finish Group:

1. That the Council write to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care; a. to highlight the serious impact on Redbridge residents’ access to maternity services since the closure of the King George Hospital Maternity Unit in 2013. b. To request an urgent review of maternity provision for women in Redbridge to address the inequity of outcomes and experiences.
2. That Redbridge Council, as part of its work with partners, reviews transport provision for pregnant women; in particular the impact of the closure of the maternity unit at King George Hospital.

NHS North East London - Update on Primary Care Access

The sub-committee was also scheduled to receive a presentation from the North East London Integrated Care Board about primary care access in Redbridge. The presentation details the progress being made against a national plan, launched in May 2023, to improve access to primary care, called the Delivery Plan for Recovering Access to Primary Care. The report begins by highlighting the particular challenges faced in Redbridge, focussing on population growth, deprivation, and a lack of GPs and nurses when compared with other London boroughs.

Redbridge has a large, vibrant and diverse population. We are the 13th largest borough in London, with a rapidly growing population, increasing by 14.6% from 279,000 in 2011 to 320,000 in 2024.

We have areas of high deprivation (Loxford, Hainault, Ilford Town Centre, Clementswood and Goodmayes) which has an impact on the wider determinants of health, increasing demand for primary care services coupled with the cost of living crisis affecting both population and the viability of GP providers.

Redbridge is below the London and national averages for GP and practice nurse to patient ratios, with 3,381 patients for every fully qualified GP working in Redbridge compared to a London average of 2,727 patients per fully qualified GP and 11,278 patients for every Nurse working in Redbridge compared to a London average of 7,770 patients to every nurse.

The presentation then goes on to outline the national strategy to improve primary care, which rests on four key themes:

• Empowering patients - Giving patients the tools to manage their own health, in particular through the use of the NHS App.
• Implementing ‘modern general practice access’ - Moving away from the traditional 8am 'phone-in' for appointments, and ensuring that patients can easily contact their GP and that they are directed to the most appropriate service for their needs.
• Building Capacity - Increasing the number of appointments available and expanding the primary care workforce to reduce pressure on GPs.
• Cutting bureaucracy - Freeing up GP time to see patients by reducing red tape.

The presentation goes on to provide a breakdown of the progress that has been made in each of these areas locally, both in Redbridge and across North East London.

Finally, the presentation gives an update on the future of the Aldersbrook Medical Centre. It describes how the contract with the current provider, the Richmond Road Medical Centre, is coming to an end and will be re-tendered through the Provider Selection Regime, with the aim of appointing an existing provider who will run the practice as an additional site.