What we can expect next

NHS leaders in east Kent have put together a wide-ranging business case for the two options, which has been assessed by independent clinicians.

It is being reviewed by NHS England, which will need to approve it given how much capital investment is needed from central NHS budgets for both projects.

It will then be put out to a 12-week public consultation, which officials stress is not a referendum between the two options.

Following this there would be a meeting of the East Kent Joint Committee of Clinical Commissioning Groups (EKJCCCG) to consider all the feedback gathered.

It would then confirm a single preferred option to progress to the final stage.

A full business case would be developed - looking exclusively at the preferred option - and submitted to NHS England, with a request for the capital investment needed.

If approved, the EKJCCCG would take a final decision to progress with implementing the preferred option.

It is expected both projects would take between five and seven years to implement from the start of the consultation.

But - as reported in the Kentish Express last week - it was confirmed earlier this month that the consultation has again been stalled as the NHS focuses on the Covid vaccine roll-out.

A spokesman for the East Kent Transformation Programme said: “We are, quite rightly, focused on our response to the pandemic and the vaccination programme at this time.

“However, we are continuing to work with colleagues at NHS England and NHS Improvement on finalising the pre-consultation business case and securing a commitment of capital funding.”

Following the release of the ‘super hospital’ image, health campaigners from Save Our NHS in Kent (Sonik) slammed the plan, claiming if health services are centralised it will result in many extra deaths every year.

Spokesman Carly Jeffery said: “This new image is just an attempt to dazzle us with a pretty looking mock-up of a new building while ignoring the grave implications of cutting the A&E, consultant-led maternity and stroke units at both Ashford and Margate.

“Studies show that unnecessary deaths result when health facilities are moved further away from where people live.

“Thanet is a severely deprived area, and as a result has poorer health and fewer people with access to a car.

“The road network is poor in east Kent, and therefore centralising all these life-saving services in just one hospital is dangerous and will lead to worse outcomes.

“Urgent treatment centres, which would replace full A&E at Margate and Ashford, are GP-led, meaning that there are no consultants on hand.

“Most of the medics will be below GP level and there will be a lack of specialists to treat people. They are not comparable to an A&E.”