A councillor is calling for action over delays at Warrington Hospital’s A&E department, with some people spending up to 18 hours waiting on trolleys.
Cllr John Roddy (Reform UK) is also calling for stronger leadership as he raised urgent concerns about the continuing crisis at Warrington Hospital’s A&E department, where patients are reportedly facing up to 12-hour delays to be seen and spending as long as 18 hours on trolleys. These significant delays are causing growing anxiety for patients and their families across Warrington.
At last week’s full council meeting of Warrington Borough Council, Cllr Roddy also criticised the lack of recent updates from the MP for Warrington South, who made A&E pressures a central issue during her election campaign but has not provided clarity on any progress since. He is calling for transparency regarding:
•Plans to increase urgent care and triage capacity
•Possible establishment of alternative treatment or urgent care centres
•Any progress toward securing a new hospital for Warrington
During a recent council meeting, Cllr Roddy questioned Cllr Maureen McLaughlin, whose portfolio responsibility includes maintaining a positive and effective relationship with the NHS and Warrington & Halton Hospital Trust. He asked whether she agreed that essential infrastructure—particularly healthcare capacity—must be prioritised before further major housing developments are approved in Warrington.
Although Cllr McLaughlin gave a lengthy response praising the dedication of local NHS staff, he says she did not address the issue of unacceptable A&E waiting times, nor offer a clear position on linking infrastructure improvements to future housing development. When asked to clarify her response, she stated she could not remember what she had written and noted that her printer had run out of ink.
Cllr Roddy was then given only twenty seconds to respond. He used the limited time to express concern that neither the council nor the local MP are gripping this situation strongly enough. With Andy Carter now appointed Chair of the Hospital Trust, Cllr Roddy emphasised the need for stronger leadership and more assertive negotiation on behalf of Warrington residents.
He added that if additional representation is needed in discussions with the Hospital Trust, he would be willing to personally assist in future negotiations to ensure residents’ concerns are properly addressed.
Speaking after the meeting, Cllr John Roddy added: “It is completely unacceptable for patients to wait 12 hours or more in A&E. Our community deserves answers, urgency, and real leadership. Healthcare infrastructure must come before further large-scale housing developments. I will continue pushing for transparency, accountability, and decisive action to secure the improvements Warrington desperately needs.”
In response, Cllr McLaughlin said: “Cllr Roddy disrupted the Full Council meeting on Monday by asking the Mayor to ignore meeting protocols set out clearly in the Council’s constitution.
I explained I had had a problem with my printer on Monday and so had to refer to notes from my laptop, which caused a small delay. However, in the meeting I gave Cllr Roddy a very detailed response, which I have summarised below:
“I thanked our hospital staff, who, between them, represent around 80 different nationalities from around the world.
“The Labour Government is focused on improving our NHS after 14 years of underinvestment under the Conservatives. I’m confident that Sarah Hall MP has been working extremely hard to get the improvements we want to see.
“Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Trust is progressing actions to improve urgent and emergency care performance and to reduce hospital admissions. Our social care team at the council works closely with Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust to support this work.
“The Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care Board is reviewing the provision of urgent treatment centres, which Sarah and I have advocated for in Warrington,
“It cannot be right to prevent local people from getting the housing they need while we mend the NHS. Healthcare provision is always considered when determining applications for major new housing developments. Overcrowded and inadequate housing can lead to more people requiring hospital care. It shouldn’t be an either/or – we need to do both.
“In my role as Chair of the Health and Wellbeing board, and my associated role as an appointed member of the hospital’s council of governors, I continue to challenge and advocate for local residents and have personally been to visit A and E to see the challenges for myself.”
Meanwhile, a Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals spokesperson said: “Our Emergency Department, like other hospitals across the country, continues to experience extremely high demand and we are sorry that people may experience longer waits than expected.
“Our staff work exceptionally hard to make sure that the most seriously ill and injured patients are seen immediately, regardless of how busy the department is. We are committed to working with all partner organisations to improve urgent and emergency care across Warrington and Halton.”
