Consultation on the future of Healthwatch North Somerset

What does Healthwatch do?

We find out what matters to patients and carers in North Somerset and help make sure their views shape the support they need.

Healthwatch was created by Part 5 of the Health and Social Care Act 2012.

Healthwatch consists of a national body, Healthwatch England, and a local organisation operating in each local council area in England with social care responsibilities.

In our area, this organisation is known as Healthwatch North Somerset.

Healthwatch is a statutory service, which means that North Somerset Council must by law ensure that it is provided, and that it should do so by providing funding to an independent social enterprise.

The law also describes what each local Healthwatch needs to do, a summary of which includes:

1. Promoting and supporting the involvement of local people in the commissioning, provision and scrutiny of local care services.
2. Enabling local people to monitor the standard of provision of local care services and in deciding how local care services could and ought to be improved.
3. Obtaining the views of local people regarding their experiences of local care services and making these known.
4. Making reports and recommendations about how local care services might be improved and informing commissioners and providers of care services about these reports, which are also shared with Healthwatch England.
5. Providing advice and information to the public about access to local care services so that they may make informed choices.
6. Formulating views on the standard of provision and whether and how the local care services could and ought to be improved; and sharing these views with Healthwatch England.
7. Providing Healthwatch England with the intelligence and insight it needs to enable it to perform effectively
8. Making recommendations to Healthwatch England to advise the Care Quality Commission to conduct special reviews or investigation

What kind of things does Healthwatch do in North Somerset?

Conduct ‘enter and view’ visits to GP surgeries and care homes, to understand patients’ experiences and recommend changes

Hold public meetings where users of services can discuss issues and concerns about health and care services they use

Produce an annual report of its activities.

We are also tasked with producing special reports on matters which affect the local community. 

Recently this has included reports on the patient experience of services for:

• Diabetes Care
• Services for Stroke rehabilitation
• Support available to Carers
• The experience of users of Psychological services
• Access to GP surgeries
• Rural Community Assets

We are currently working on a report on Young People’s experience of the Mental Health support services they receive through schools and college.