Reaction to media story: Three NHS Direct contact centres to close
28 Sep 2011
Commenting on the media story that NHS Direct is closing three of its contact centres, Nick Chapman, Chief Executive of NHS Direct said:
“Our landlord has given us notice on the contact centre space we occupy at our Chelmsford and Norwich sites, and we regretfully have no option but to close these sites in the coming 12 months. This has implications for the contact centre in Ipswich which is heavily supported by these two sites.
“There is much work we need to do to understand the full implications of these closures, before a final plan can be agreed by the Trust Board. Every option will be explored to redeploy those staff affected. We already have over 100 members of nursing staff currently working from home permanently and there are sites in surrounding areas. No decision has been made to make staff redundant at this time.”
Number of staff affected |
|
Chelmsford |
77 |
Norwich |
27 |
Ipswich |
16 |
Total: |
120 |
The landlord is East of England Ambulance Service (EEAS). EEAS has given NHS Direct the following deadlines to vacate:
Chelmsford - by May 2012
Norwich - by September 2012
In view of these deadlines NHS Direct is also working to a closure date of May 2012 for Ipswich.
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