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Government drops plans to abolish Healthwatch

We’re pleased to share that the government has announced it will not go ahead with plans to abolish Healthwatch England and local Healthwatch organisations, including Healthwatch Luton.

The proposal to close the Healthwatch network was announced in June 2025 and has meant more than a year of uncertainty. The government has now confirmed that the clauses in the Health Bill relating to abolition will be withdrawn.

For us, this means we can carry on doing what we do: making sure the people of Luton have an independent voice in how health and social care services are planned, delivered and improved. That includes listening to your experiences, sharing them with those who make decisions, and visiting services through our Enter and View programme to see care first-hand and make recommendations.

We want to thank everyone who supported Healthwatch over the past year. Whether you wrote to your MP, shared your story, backed our campaign or simply told us what Healthwatch means to you, you made a real difference.

There is still work to do. We will be following the next steps closely, and we’ll share updates as we learn more about what this means for local Healthwatch. In the meantime, our work continues as usual. If you’ve had a good or bad experience of a health or care service in Luton, we want to hear about it.

Get in touch and share your views.

What is your experience of GP services in Luton? 

We want to hear what's working well, what could be improved, and any challenges you have faced accessing care. Share your experience and help us build a clearer picture of GP services across Luton.

We want to hear from you.

We want to understand the experiences of people across Luton. Including those who have found it difficult to contact their GP practice or get an appointment, those who use telephone or online services, and those who have had positive experiences of their care.

Have you or someone you care for recently been discharged from hospital? We want to hear about your experience.

You may have experienced a delay in leaving hospital, even though you were medically ready to go home. Or perhaps you felt you were sent home too soon, without the information, equipment, care or support you needed.

We want to understand what happens when people are ready to leave hospital and whether they get home, or to the next stage of their care, safely and with the right support in place.

Whatever your experience, we want to hear from you.

At Healthwatch Luton, we make sure the voices of local people are at the heart of health and social care. Over the past year, we have engaged with people across communities, healthcare settings and local events, ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to share their views. Our Annual Report highlights the impact of that work, showcasing the difference local people's voices have made. We are proud of what we have achieved alongside our partners, and most importantly the residents who continue to share their experiences with us. We invite you to read our annual report to learn more.

Healthwatch Luton Annual Report 2025-26

A public consultation was launched on the future of Mount Vernon's Cancer Services. 

The final report is now available to read online or download. You can still watch a presentation of the findings of the draft consultation report here(External link).

Before the final decision is made, commissioners will consider the feedback provided in the report and investigate any alternatives, additional suggestions and mitigations that could improve the proposals for patients. The commissioners will weigh up all the evidence as well as the risk of closure to the service as part of their decision-making process later this year.

The public consultation ran from the 19th January to the 29th March and sets out plans to relocate the cancer centre to a new purpose build facility next to Watford General Hospital.

Find out more about the full proposals in our news article, including how you can have your say on the future of cancer services.

Find out more

What do Healthwatch do?

One of the things we do, is Enter and View Health and Social Care settings.

Enter and View visits, carried out under powers set out in the Health and Social Care Act 2008, give trained representatives the opportunity to step inside services, observe care in action, and speak directly with residents, patients, staff, and visitors.

Where we visit is based on service users feedback, so its important to have your say, share your views and let us know what you think about services.

Share your views online, or contact us via email or phone. The more people share their ideas, experiences and concerns about National Health Service (NHS) and social care, the more services can understand what works and what doesn't.

Find out more about the ways we're helping to improve people's experiences of health and social care services.

We are here to make sure that those running services, and the government, put your views at the heart of care.