Chartwell in-patient unit campaign update 10.11.25 – 25,000 say no and call for transparency on in-patient capability.
Two months on from the launch of the campaign against proposals concerning the Chartwell In-patient Unit at the Princess Royal University Hospital and opposition remains strong. Over 25,000 people have now formally put their names to a single, unambiguous message: do not remove or dilute local inpatient cancer care at the PRUH.
Across the testimonies that signatories have shared, community priorities are consistent:
- Care must remain close to home: Relocation will create delay, complexity, and clinical risk, resulting in the very barriers to access that proposals seek to address.
- Support networks must be able to reach patients: Carers, families and friends travel in from well beyond the immediate PRUH catchment – Eltham, Biggin Hill, Tatsfield, St Mary Cray and neighbouring communities. Moving inpatient care further away makes visits harder and, for some, impossible.
- A protected, specialist clinical environment matters: People value Chartwell because it is a dedicated, infection-controlled setting, staffed by people who know the unit’s caseload and the complexity of haematology and cancer inpatients.
We have been given assurances by KCH that the Chartwell Ward will not be closed and will continue to support cancer patients at PRUH. However, this does not yet answer the central question being put to us by the community: will PRUH retain protected inpatient cancer care capacity — i.e. defined beds, appropriate infection-prevention standards and dedicated, specialist staff — on site? Until that is made explicit, the position remains unclear.
Procedural shortcomings in this process remain a live concern that is shared by councillors and others across the community. In early October, our submission of evidence gathered through the campaign and our request that it be logged as formal community input went unacknowledged. With support, we have secured a response from the Deputy CEO, recognising that engagement throughout has not been handled correctly and that this would be rectified.
That concession is important, but to date, there is still no published information around such engagement processes or a visible mechanism for our community to input into decision-making. Despite assurances, the Trust has yet to evidence how it is “putting people at the heart” of this process, as it is procedurally bound to do.
In light of this, and in a constructive spirit, we are continuing to hold King’s to account and maintaining pressure on them to honour their duty and commitment to the community by commencing a transparent and meaningful engagement process and by giving a written assurance that protected inpatient cancer care will be maintained at PRUH.
We believe this is a proportionate ask. The Trust has already acknowledged procedural deficiencies; the community has set out, with decisive clarity and scale, what matters to it – local, specialist, accessible inpatient care. We now call on the Trust to demonstrate, promptly and visibly, how the people most affected by this proposal can take an active part in shaping it.
Please sign and share our petition. Every signature helps keep care safe, specialist and close to home: https://chng.it/LScTZjXfFW
Media contacts: Michael Douglas, Trustee, michaeldouglas@chartwellcancertrust.co.uk