Local health champion, Healthwatch Herefordshire, has been shortlisted for a national award for its work on end of life care Celebrated every year, the awards highlight the ways in which local Healthwatch across the country have helped make people’s views of health and social care services heard.

Healthwatch Herefordshire has been nominated for an award in the category; ‘Helping people have their say’. They have been reaching out to people to find out about their experiences and views of end of life care in Herefordshire.

Christine Price, Chief Officer of Healthwatch Herefordshire, said: “We are very proud to be recognised for our work on people’s views of their end of life care. This work has been praised in a West Midlands quality review of end of life care and is now being used locally to improve services. The importance of the work is providing local people with a voice which has an impact on services locally.

“We are grateful to our volunteers and members of the public who took the time to tell us their stories about end of life care, to Mary Simpson who co-ordinated this project, and to those who plan and deliver end of life services for listening to the feedback and recommendations. This project was an excellent example of how local people and local services can work together with their Healthwatch to make a difference.”

There were more than 170 entries for the Awards which recognise Healthwatch teams who have put their communities at the heart of the big decisions about health and care.

From encouraging a greater focus on wellbeing services for rough sleepers in Hastings to improving seven-day access to GPs in Manchester, Healthwatch across the country have been working hard to ensure health and care services meet the needs of their communities.

The overall winner from each category will be chosen by a panel of judges and announced at the annual conference in October 2018.

Jane Mordue, Chair of Healthwatch England, said: “Last year, more than 341,000 people shared their views about where things could be improved in health and social care with the Healthwatch network. The Healthwatch Network Awards are a fantastic opportunity to celebrate this work.”