'It's totally immoral': Campaigners petition to save empty hospital wing in Devon

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Campaigners fighting to save an empty wing at a community hospital in Devon have said it is "totally immoral" that the cost to rent the building is so high.

Last month, Devon County Council's Health and Scrutiny Committee voted to request a pause in plans to hand a two-story wing at Seaton Community Hospital back to owners NHS Properties.

NHS Devon is planning to hand back the ward, which costs around £300,000 a year in rent and other charges, to its property services due to "a lack of financially viable plans."

Seaton Hospital Steering Committee said around 9,000 people — more than the town's population — have signed a petition against a proposal to hand a wing back to NHS Properties.

The petition was presented to Dr Sarah Wollaston, Chair of NHS Devon, ahead of a meeting on Wednesday 6 December.

The ward closed in 2017 so NHS Devon could make use of at-home community care, but currently costs around £300,000 a year in rent and other charges.

Campaigners say the two-storey wing at Seaton Community Hospital was funded entirely by the local community. Credit: Google Maps

The two-story ward closed in 2017 so NHS Devon could make use of at-home community care and is now mostly empty.

Community groups want the wing to be repurposed as a care hub, which would include support for patients with dementia.

Martin Shaw, from Seaton Hospital Steering Committee, said it is a "tragedy" that the NHS in Devon can't find a financially viable solution.

"We want the hospital to be fully used for health and wellbeing services, and we think there are lots of services that can be brought into that hospital," Mr Shaw said.

"The tragedy is that NHS Devon are saying that they haven't got the money to do that, and so we are looking for a community solution," he added.

Dr Sarah Wollaston said considering the local community raised the money for the building in the first place, she would like to see "a much better deal."

"What we'd like to see is NHS Property Services looking at the public benefit that can come from voluntary sector organisations using these spaces within NHS buildings," she said.

NHS Devon said it will continue to work with the campaigners and NHS Property Services to find a viable financial solution to allow the greater community to use the building.