This week it was confirmed that West Herts Hospitals Trust is moving out of special measures, after making sustained improvements in the services it provides. This is a huge achievement, and testament to the hard working staff who should all be very proud today.

The dedication of the staff and leadership has been clear, and the inspection has picked up on the significant progress that has been made. It’s great to see that the improvements are across the board and that the CQC noted a ‘positive culture’ at the hospitals. This is also the second year running where the overwhelming trend is an increasing number of 'good' ratings.

The decision to remove the trust from special measures follows a September 2017 Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection and a recommendation from the Chief Inspector of Hospitals.

There is still more work to do to improve patient services, but this is a solid foundation to build on. I recently pushed for more funding for our emergency department and I was pleased when Watford General was awarded an extra £1 million to expand A&E and help with winter pressures.

I will continue to work closely with the trust to make sure our patient services are the very best they can be.

NHS Staff are now developing the next stage of plans for Watford General. This has my full support and I will be campaigning for the resources they need!