More than 2,300 residents in Rugby have signed an open letter organized by John Slinger, calling on the Coventry and Warwickshire Integrated Care Board to upgrade the town’s nurse-led Urgent Treatment Centre at the Hospital of St Cross to a doctor-led facility. The campaign, which gathered signatures in just two days following its launch on Saturday morning, highlights growing frustration over local healthcare capacity as residents face long journeys to neighboring emergency departments.
The Hospital of St Cross previously operated its own A&E department before its closure in 1997. While the facility currently features a nurse-led Urgent Treatment Centre—and recently welcomed out-of-hours GP services—Slinger argues that healthcare provision has failed to keep pace with the borough’s 14.3% population growth between 2011 and 2021. The push for an upgrade has resonated with local families navigating stretched regional services.
Pressure on Regional Hospitals
Residents have detailed severe strain at alternative facilities, particularly University Hospital Coventry (UHC). Local resident Simon Burne described the UHC A&E department as absolute chaos
and like a battle zone
after waiting eight hours for his wife to see a doctor following a small stroke. Burne and other campaigners point out that patients routinely crowd neighboring hospitals because no equivalent service exists within Rugby.
Slinger’s open letter, addressed to ICB chief executive Simon Trickett, urges health bosses to implement the doctor-led upgrade as soon as possible
so residents can access treatment locally without depending on overloaded emergency wards.
Response from Health Bosses
In the wake of the petition, which has been viewed more than 23,000 times on Facebook, the Coventry and Warwickshire Integrated Care Board stated that it has invited people across the region to share their views on local urgent care. The ICB noted that public feedback is actively shaping a new model, acknowledging that prior concerns centered on long waiting times and the distance to University Hospital Coventry.
The NHS Integrated Urgent and Emergency Care programme has introduced initial measures to manage demand, including out-of-hours GP support at the Hospital of St Cross. However, officials have yet to confirm whether the community’s demands for a fully doctor-led upgrade will be incorporated into the upcoming redesign of local services.
