Burnham Town Mayor tells developers and the NHS to ‘keep us in the loop’ over surgery plans, as 1,300 residents sign petition

By Ben Shahrabi 23rd Aug 2023

Local News

Local News by Ben Shahrabi 23rd Aug 2023

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Burnham Town Mayor Duncan Rawlinson has thanked residents for attending a public debate on the future of the town's surgery, along with those who organised it.

Last Friday (August 18), around 250 residents piled into Ormiston Rivers Academy's main hall to put their questions to a panel of developers, NHS representatives and local MP Sir John Whittingdale.

Councillor Rawlinson told Nub News: "We believe it was the biggest political event ever held in Burnham, which shows the strength of feeling in the town."

Panellists were presented with a petition signed by 1,300 Burnham residents, independent of the council. It was originally handed to Samantha Glover, CEO of NHS watchdog Healthwatch Essex, who passed it on to Sir John Whittingdale. The Maldon MP then passed it on to Dan Doherty from the local NHS Health Authority, before it was eventually returned to Ms Glover.

Rumours about Burnham Surgery's possible relocation circulated on Facebook, where residents shared an extract from an email sent to Maldon District Councillor Wendy Stamp. As concerns began to grow, Cllr Rawlinson and others decided to hold a public meeting.

"Sir John Whittingdale was the one who pushed to get the meeting organised sooner rather than later," Cllr Rawlinson said.

"We got the best venue in town at short notice and pushed it as hard as we could. We knew it was going to be big and that there would be a lot of people."

Cllr Rawlinson says the "overwhelming" number of residents who attended showed the panellists the passion and strength of feeling of the town.

"I think the people of Burnham were allowed to get their opinion across - that's what matters," he said.

Having not seen the original email read out by Maldon District Councillor Wendy Stamp during the meeting prior to last Friday, Cllr Rawlinson told the panellists: "You lot need to keep the Town Council in the loop".

As a representative of Burnham residents, Cllr Rawlinson says the Town Council should be involved in talks going forward. He feels the developers and others on the panel must listen to residents' concerns.

He told Nub News: "It's about holding those people accountable to the residents of Burnham and the surrounding area. Because Burnham Surgery doesn't just serve the town's residents."

During the meeting, it was revealed that 80 per cent of the surgery's patients came from the town, while 20 per cent came from elsewhere in the Dengie Peninsula, including Althorne and North Fambridge.

"It's about trying to do the right thing," Cllr Rawlinson added.