Acting Director of Specialised Commissioning, John Stewart, provides an important update on NHS England’s work on congenital heart disease.

Since taking on this role I have been closely involved in this work but, with Will Huxter’s recent move to a new role, I will now have more direct involvement and become NHS England’s lead director for the congenital heart disease review. Dr Vaughan Lewis, who is the medical director for Specialised Commissioning in our south regional team, will support me in providing clinical leadership to the programme, taking over as chair of the programme board and the national panel.

The consultation remained open during the election period but we had to stand down a number of events, which I am pleased to say have now all been rearranged. Most events do not require any booking, but where they do, details are given below:

• 19 June, 2.00pm – 5.00pm: Bristol Patient, Public and Staff event, Education Centre, Bristol Royal Infirmary.
• 22 June, 1.00pm – 3.00pm: Lincolnshire Patient, Public and Staff event, New Life Centre Sleaford – to register for this event please email congenitalheart@nhs.net
• 24 June, 11.00am – 2.00pm: Royal Brompton Patient and Family event, Royal Brompton Hospital, to register for this event please email england.congenitalheart@nhs.net
• 27 June, 6.30pm – 8.30pm: Newcastle Patient, Public and Staff event, Newcastle Civic Centre.
• 27 June, 5.30pm: Leicester, Leicestershire, Rutland Joint OSC, Leicester City Council.
• 28 June, 6.30pm – 8.30pm: Middlesbrough Patient, Public and Staff event, St Mary’s Centre, Corporation Road, Middlesbrough.
• 30 June, 1.30pm – 3.30pm: Nottingham Patient, Public and Staff event,The Wallace Room, The Education & Conference Centre, Nottingham University Hospitals, City Hospital Campus to register for this event please email ft@nuh.nhs.uk
• 1 July, 1.00pm – 4.00pm : Leicester Patient and Family event, Glenfield Hospital to register for this event please email congenitalheart@nhs.net
• Date and time to be confirmed: Joint Yorkshire and the Humber OSC, Leeds City Council
• 11 July, 6.30pm: Kensington and Chelsea OSC, Kensington Town Hall.

Details of all events and all the other consultation materials and the response form for the consultation can be found on our consultation platform.

With the consultation coming towards a close, it’s important that anyone who wants to contribute to the consultation does so in the coming weeks we want to hear your views and thoughts. When the NHS England board comes to make their decision, they will want to have a thorough understanding of why people hold the views they do, and to hear thoughts on how the proposals would affect people, and how services can be improved for all. So, the more detail you can give the better.

Consultation closes at 23.59 on the 17 July 2017. As this has been a very long consultation – 22 weeks in all – we will be strict in applying the rule that only responses received before that time will be included in our formal analysis.