Agenda and draft minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

An apology for absence was received from Councillor Kirk.  

RESOLVED: Councillor Blunt was appointed as Chair for the meeting.

RESOLVED: Councillor Collop was appointed as Vice - Chair for the meeting.

To approve the minutes of the Joint Panels Meeting held on the 28^th January 2026.

RESOLVED: The minutes from the previous meeting were agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chair. 

Please indicate if there are any interests which should be declared.  A declaration of an interest should indicate the nature of the interest (if not already declared on the Register of Interests) and the agenda item to which it relates.  If a disclosable pecuniary interest is declared, the Member should withdraw from the room whilst the matter is discussed.

These declarations apply to all Members present, whether the Member is part  of the meeting, attending to speak as a local Member on any item or simply observing the meeting from the public seating area.

There was none.

Members wishing to speak pursuant to Standing Order 34 should inform the Chairman of their intention to do so and on what items they wish to be heard before the meeting commences.  Any Member attending the meeting under Standing Order 34 will only be permitted to speak on those items which have been previously notified to the Chairman.

Councillors Heneghan, Powers, de Winton and Storey were present remotely under Standing Order 34a.

Councillors Ratcliffe, Ring and de Whalley were present under Standing Order 34a.

Councillors Colwell and Ryves were present remotely under Standing Order 34b.

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The Leader, Councillor Beales, introduced the report and advised that, since Full Council, he had written to the Hospital Group and had received a response. He highlighted that no decision had yet been made and that a report was expected to be considered by the Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee (HOSC) in November. He noted that the matter would also be considered by the Integrated Care Board.

The Leader sought clarification on the proposed timeline and commented that there was a public perception that a decision had already been made. Members were advised that the survey questions had been prepared by the University Trust rather than Healthwatch and that an interim report was expected to be considered by HOSC at its meeting on 19 November. The Leader added that Alex Stuart, Chief Executive of Healthwatch, had confirmed that responses submitted to the published Healthwatch enquiry email address would be considered as part of the public engagement.

The Assistant Director for Health, Wellbeing and Public Protection clarified that HOSC was the statutory scrutiny body and that West Norfolk had a representative on the Committee. HOSC would scrutinise the evidence and decision-making process rather than determine whether Accident and Emergency (A&E) or maternity services should remain at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH). The Chief of Staff and Monitoring Officer highlighted the importance of engaging with HOSC at the appropriate stage, following the commencement of public consultation, which was expected after spring 2027.

Jo Segasby, Deputy Chief Executive and Delivery Officer at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, clarified that the work remained at the case-for-change stage and that no decisions had been made regarding individual services. She explained that evidence had been assembled to establish whether there was a case for changing the way healthcare was provided. No final decision had been made regarding A&E, maternity or other services, and no preferred model had been agreed.

Jo Segasby advised that the Integrated Care Board was expected to consider the case for change on 4 November and determine whether further work or the preparation of a full business case should be commissioned. The proposal would then be considered by HOSC, which would determine whether the scale of the proposed work required wider public consultation.

She further explained that, should the Integrated Care Board accept the case for change and HOSC require further work, a more detailed business case was expected to be developed by spring 2027. Subject to approval by the Integrated Care Board and NHS England, public consultation could commence in summer 2027, with any final decision being made following that consultation.

Councillor Long expressed concern that the needs of West Norfolk could be diluted within a county-wide committee and asked the Panel to provide a clear recommendation to its representative on HOSC. Councillor Devulapalli confirmed that she would represent the views of residents and encouraged Members and residents to register to attend HOSC and submit questions.

Members were advised that  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

The date of the next Joint Panel meeting is scheduled for 11^th November 2026 at 5:30pm in the Council Chamber, Town Hall.

The next meeting was scheduled for the 11^th November 2026 at 5:30pm in the Council Chamber, Town Hall to discuss the King’s Lynn Masterplan. A Joint Panel meeting was to be scheduled to discuss the Queen Elizabeth Hospital at an appropriate time in the future.