A COUNCILLOR from Bude is hoping to offer a voice for residents when tackling issues surrounding local healthcare.

Cllr Lorraine Corrigan-Turner has revealed her hopes to create a group for the people of Bude and Stratton, which offers direct contact with local NHS representatives to help tackle local healthcare issues. 

The idea came about after she heard of a similar programme being used in Saltash last year.  

Cllr Corrigan-Turner said: “As you know last year there was a plan to organise a health steering group, this would be headed by a GP who had already started a steering group in the Saltash area, we met at Stratton hospital with lots of different people including the NHS, Friends of Stratton Hospital and Cornwall councillors. The meeting was incredibly passionate and offered a possibility of being heard.”  

Despite attempts to create such a programme, the GP was moved to a different post.  

However, Cllr Corrigan-Turner is once again hoping to create a space for local voices, inviting the surrounding parishes to come together and discuss issues with a singular voice. 

She continued: “As you know I'm the lead counsellor for the community area partnership, which is combined with a number of other parishes. We had a meeting with the NHS and different agencies recently, and we voted that a group be set up specifically for health and wellbeing, potentially offering us a chance to discuss issues from Bude and surrounding areas, this will also be a route to pass on the information to the NHS, which will come directly from the public. 

“We have now had two meetings, which have been very interesting and very productive. 

“We are now looking into what we would like to work on, I have the information available from the surveys from last year, but I will also be asking for the public's input , we are just about to start advertising that the group is starting and we will be able to let you know exactly what we're doing very soon.”