Hello and welcome to The Blackpool Lead.

Today we report on Blackpool Victoria Hospital and the struggles it is facing in terms of meeting rising demand for healthcare services.

The issue is not something exclusive to the Vic – this winter especially saw demand for services in hospitals match those seen during the pandemic (though, for context, the pandemic also saw high numbers of non-Covid patients stay at home).

We also have, for paying subscribers, our third history piece. This time it comes courtesy of Marton historian Philip Walsh.

A patient turning up at Blackpool Victoria Hospital’s A&E department had to wait five and a half days for a bed to become available, it can be revealed.

Figures released by the hospital, in Whinney Heys Road, under freedom of information laws show the lengthy waits experienced by those arriving in the emergency department last year.

While the longest wait was for almost six days – at 7,991 minutes – delays of more than 12 hours from the decision to admit to actual admission – known as “trolley waits” – were not rare, with an average of 21 people waiting more than 12 hours for a bed to become available every day.

Over the course of the year, 7,815 patients waited for more than 12 hours, 2,704 for more than 24, 640 for more than 36 (1.5 days), 47 for more than 62 (2.5 days) and 17 for more than 96 (four days).

The vast majority were there for help with physical matters.

Mental health patients made up 266 of those waiting for more than 12 hours, 176 of those waiting for 24, 113 for 36, 45 for 72 and 16 for 96.

The longest wait recorded – the patient who waited five and a half days – was for mental health.

Janet Barnsley, chief operating officer at the Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the Vic, said there has been a surge of demand for health care in recent years – with the resort “no exception”.

She said: “There has been an overall increase in Emergency Department attendances at Blackpool Victoria Hospital of 3% across the year, but over winter we have seen an increase of 8%.

“We know this impacts on the experience of patients and the NHS is working hard to make improvements to reduce waiting times within all urgent and emergency care services.

“This said, we know there are some areas where we are not meeting our high standards. We are treating a lot of very poorly people and our 12-hour performance in December 2024 was just under the national median. This refers to the number of patients waiting over 12 hours after a decision has been made to admit them to hospital from the Emergency Department.”

Barnsley continued: “While some of our patients are experiencing some long waits to be seen and subsequently admitted to hospital, please be assured that whilst patients are waiting for a bed, they are being reviewed, assessed and supported by colleagues.”

The Blackpool Lead asked the hospital a number of questions that went unanswered, including where the mental health patient spent their five-and-a-half days waiting for a bed and how their care was handled in that time.

It also asked about any contributing factors, such as staff shortages or delays in specialist referrals, that caused the extreme delay, and if the hospital has taken steps to make sure a similar situation does not happen again.

Concern was voiced recently that new guidance on how to treat patients in corridors was “normalising the dangerous”.

The Royal College of Emergency Medicine said NHS England’s guide on “providing safe and good quality care in temporary escalation spaces” was “nonsensical” and “out of touch”.

The guidance said corridor care is “not acceptable and should not be considered as standard” but due to current pressures some hospitals are “using temporary escalation spaces more regularly – and this use is no longer ‘in extremis’”.

It gives guidance for medics so they can deliver the “safest, most effective and highest quality care possible” in the circumstances.

But the RCEM said it is “not possible to provide safe and good quality care” in corridors or cupboards.

It said: “Advice from arm’s length bodies that appear out of touch with what is happening in our departments was always going to be poorly received.”

Using corridors will lead to long waits in A&E, which are “associated with measurable harm to patients”, it added.

The RCEM said patient privacy and dignity are “not maintained” if they are being cared for in corridors, while rest and sleep for patients is “difficult, if not impossible”.

Meanwhile, controlling the spread of infection “is not possible” and it is “challenging” for staff to monitor patients.

Giving patients the treatment they need is “made more difficult and often delayed”, the College also said.

“It is distressing for patients, particularly the old and the vulnerable, to be in open, noisy, brightly lit, often cold areas,” the RCEM added.

Senior midwife Donna Ockenden, who has led reviews into patient safety in the NHS, said recently corridor care had become “normalised”.

In an interview with the PA news agency in, she said: “Trolley waits – corridor care – has become normalised.

“There are even signs on the wall now with numbers showing how many trolleys they can have at any one time.”

While those left waiting for a bed at the Vic had already been deemed in need of in-hospital treatment, Barnsley, the trust’s COO, said: “We can all play a part in supporting those who need our help by always making sure we are going to the most appropriate place for our medical needs.

“This could be a local pharmacy, NHS 111 or an urgent treatment centre. Loved ones can also help someone in hospital, who are medically ready for discharge, by picking them up and helping them settle in at home.

“You can find plenty more information about the help and care available on our website and social media channels, and the national NHS website.

“I’d like to thank my colleagues from across the trust and beyond who are working hard to see and treat everyone as quickly and effectively as possible.”

Revised plans for sports pitches next to Blo

Revised plans for community sports pitches next to Blackpool Football Club’s Bloomfield Road stadium have been withdrawn.

The application to amend the approved scheme for the Revoe Sports Village was submitted to the council by Blackpool FC last November, seeking permission to make small changes to a proposed groundsman’s hut due to be built behind the existing East and North stands at the stadium.

The main changes include the removal of the welfare facilities which are no longer required by the club, resulting in the removal of windows from the north and east elevations.

But the application has now been withdrawn while the original planning approval, granted by the Planning Committee in January 2023, remains in place.

The scheme – which has received £6.5m from Blackpool’s £40m Town Deal, is the first phase of development which it is also hoped will see a new East Stand built at the football ground.

The club is expected to invest at least £10m but a planning application has yet to be submitted, with delays blamed on rising costs which are being reviewed. An update was due to be given to the February meeting of the Blackpool Town Deal Board but minutes from the meeting have yet to be published.

The delay of both projects has raised concerns among councillors with the Town Deal funding due to be spent by the end of March 2026, although deadlines could be extended by a further year if the government agrees to a request.

Nick Gerrard, growth and prosperity programme director at Blackpool Council, told a meeting in February the contract for the Revoe sports pitches had been signed.

Addressing a meeting of the Tourism, Economy and Communities Scrutiny Committee, he said tenders for the work were being evaluated.

He also reiterated to the meeting that “Blackpool Football Club are saying they do want to build the East Stand.”

Planning permission is in place for investment at Revoe Sports Village including an enclosed full-size 11-a-side artificial grass pitch and an enclosed five-a-side artificial grass pitch, both with floodlighting, a single-storey changing pavilion and a storage building.

The council has been negotiating over a couple of years to buy properties on Henry Street to enable the East Stand to be built, with the latest information confirming 17 properties have been acquired, with a further sale going through, and two residential properties plus the Firwood Timber and Building Supplies site subject to ongoing negotiations.

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