More information is needed on the impact of the overnight closure on Grantham A&E on Nottingham and Leicester hospitals before proposals for the future of the service can be published, say councillors.
Councillor Carl Macey, chair of the health scrutiny panel for Lincolnshire, said people need to know the full impact of the overnight closure of the town’s emergency department.
North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust (NWAFT), which runs Peterborough City Hospital, said it had seen an increase in patients from three separate postcode areas in the town, including Grantham Town and the north and south of the town.
Bosses from United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust, who made the decision to close the A&E overnight in August 2016, said a 24/7 service at the hospital “is needed” for the town.
Councillor Carl Macey, chair of the health scrutiny panel for Lincolnshire.
But, Councillor Macey said the panel wants to ensure public knows the full scale of the impact before any proposal is published in the future.
He called for figures on the impact on Nottingham University Hospital and Leicester Hospital to be revealed to the committee.
“The reason is if we have seen an impact over in Peterborough, then there is no doubt going to be an impact in Nottingham, Leicester, Lincoln and Pilgrim Hospital as well,” he said.
“We need to ascertain what figures we are looking at, because it has been well over three years now that it has been shut and we want to see a return to a 24/7 walk-in access to Grantham Hospital.
“The committee has always been very strong on that point and we will continue to push until we get the right result for the people of Grantham.”
ULHT chief operating officer Mark Brassington. Photo: Lincolnshire Reporter
Mark Brassington, chief operating officer at ULHT, said there was “no debate” about returning the department to a 24/7 service.
“I have been involved in this since the decision was made and it was not taken lightly,” he said.
“I do not think anybody is debating about the need for a 24/7 presence at Grantham. It is needed for the population.”
Councillor Ray Wootten, county councillor for Grantham, pointed out that the department had been closed for 1,156 days and that the town needs a walk-in service.
“It really gets up residents’ backs, it’s gone on longer than Brexit,” he said.
Proposals for the future of Grantham A&E will go out to public consultation following the end of Healthy Conversations engagement by the Lincolnshire STP on October 31.
But, councillors have said that further information is needed on the overnight closure impact following figures revealed by North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust.
Impact on Peterborough City Hospital
Last month, NWAFT revealed in its annual report that more than 2,500 patients have attended Peterborough hospital A&E since the overnight closure and added it “continues to see an increase” during the evening time.
Further figures from the trust show that the Grantham Town area had an increase in ambulance arrivals to Peterborough since the decision.
Peterborough City Hospital. Picture: Michael Trolove.
In 2015/16, 47 patients attended the hospital’s A&E compared with 164 in 2018/19.
Meanwhile, 291 people from the south of Grantham arrived at the trust by ambulance last year.
That compares with 190 from the same area back in 2015/16.
The trust said its share of emergency patients arriving between 6pm and 8am “increased significantly”.
It added that the trust’s share of patients attending overnight increased from 16% in 2016/17 to 30% last year.
NWAFT said it could not determine whether or not patients who attended the hospital could not receive treatment at Grantham A&E under its exclusion protocol.
ULHT said in its report to the committee that the impact of the closure has been managed and “will continue to be managed by other A&E departments and NHS services, until the outcome of the consultation on Grantham A&E.”
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‘Raunchy mini-golf action’ is coming to Lincoln as GloryHoles Golf prepares to open its third bar later this summer.
GloryHoles Golf will open in the unit formerly occupied by Interpsort on Lincoln High Street, initially for drinks by the end of July.
It is expected to open with a full 18 holes of raunchy mini-golf action, including 13 lucky dip holes, before the end of September.
GloryHoles was set up by business partners Dan Brown, Drew Hewitt and Dave Hood of Curious Venues, who have so far opened venues with their ‘unique adult mini-golf experience’ in Nottingham and Sheffield.
The bar area is expected to include arcade machines, pool and beer pong, and there is also expected to be an upstairs room for private hire with games and screens. The 18 holes will each have their own unique themes and challenges.
There are also plans for a terrace area, as well as outdoor seating in front of the building. The former occupiers of the building Intersport closed in January 2021 before reopening for a weekend in June last year to dispose of its remaining stock.
GloryHoles Golf will open on Lincoln High Street in the unit formerly occupied by Intersport. | Photo: The Lincolnite
It is understood that prices will be £10 per head from Monday to Thursday, and then £12 Friday to Sunday. Opening hours are expected to be 4pm-11pm on Mondays, 12pm-11pm Tuesdays to Thursdays, 12pm-1am Fridays and Saturdays, and 12pm-10pm on Sundays.
If Lincoln matches its Nottingham bar, then customers could be urged to “grab your club and take it to the jungle, ride the wave and take on extraterrestrials across 18 uniquely themed holes to fill”.
GloryHoles provides ‘adult themed crazy golf’. | Photo: The Lincolnite
In terms of the bar and lounge, its Nottingham venue says “even the best need to take a break after getting balls deep in our holes.”
Update: Lincolnshire Police said on June 30 that Benjamin Flatters has now been detained.
A 31-year-old Lincolnshire man is wanted by police in connection with a serious assault, just months after he was given a year-long prison sentence.
Benjamin Flatters, 31, was sentenced to 12 months in prison in December 2021 after he frightened a woman and her grandson by arming himself with a knife he’d taken from the room of another resident at a motel he was staying at.
He admitted two charges of affray and possession of a bladed article after this incident, and it is not the first time he has been in trouble with the law.
Flatters was given a two-week jail term in 2013 when he posted offensive comments on Facebook regarding the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby in London.
He had sent messages of a “grossly offensive” nature, aimed towards Muslims and extremists, while also being charged for allegedly sending messages of a sexual nature to underage girls and offering to supply drugs via social media.
He is now wanted by officers in connection with another serious assault, and if you have seen him or know where he is you should contact Lincolnshire Police on 101.
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