South Cotswolds MP Urges NHS Bosses to Rethink “Downgrading by the Back Door” at Cirencester Hospital

South Cotswolds MP Dr Roz Savage has called on NHS leaders to urgently rethink plans to suspend the operating theatre service at Cirencester Hospital, warning that the changes risk “downgrading by the back door” and could have damaging consequences for patient care, staff morale, and local health resilience. 

Roz met last week with senior officials at the Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust, to raise concerns about the proposed six-month “temporary” closure. Following the meeting, Roz wrote to both executives to urge greater transparency and proper consultation with clinicians. 

In her letter, the Liberal Democrat MP highlighted that Cirencester’s operating theatre plays a vital role in supporting Orthopaedic, Urology, and Oral Surgery services. Roz warned that its closure during the winter months, when pressures on Gloucestershire’s main hospitals are at their highest, would be “a short-sighted and potentially damaging step”. 

“Clinicians tell me that Cirencester’s theatre has been underused not because there’s no need, but because lists have been moved centrally - giving a misleading impression of low demand,” Roz said. “At a time when Gloucester Royal and Cheltenham General are already overstretched, it makes no sense to take capacity out of a safe, efficient, and much-loved community hospital.” 

Roz also raised concerns that many frontline clinicians have not been meaningfully consulted and that the rationale for the closure appears to be driven more by finance and convenience than by patient safety or service quality. 

NHS Gloucestershire has said the closure is a temporary “test of change”, designed to explore whether concentrating specialist teams and equipment at fewer sites could “improve patient care, experience and outcomes” and “increase efficiency”. The Trust has stressed that “no long-term decisions” have been made about individual hospitals and that the review will include patient and staff feedback. 

However, many local people remain deeply sceptical about assurances that the change is temporary. The downgrade of the Minor Injuries Unit in 2016 was also described as a temporary measure - as was the 2020 reduction in blood services - yet neither were ever reinstated. 

Roz emphasised that the hospital serves a rapidly growing community, with major housing developments underway that will place additional pressure on local health services. Roz also raised concerns about limited public transport options to larger hospitals in Gloucester and Cheltenham, which make travelling for treatment particularly difficult for elderly residents and those without access to a car. 

“Cirencester Hospital provides outstanding care and plays a crucial role in our local health network,” Roz added. “Rather than reducing its role, the Trust should be expanding it - supporting more local trauma and day-case procedures, which would relieve pressure on the larger hospitals and keep care closer to home.” 

ENDS