NHS Cheshire and Merseyside July 2025 Blog
Friday, 25 July 2025
Industrial action by resident doctors - formerly known as junior doctors - began at 7am this morning and is scheduled to continue until 7am on Wednesday 30 July.
It is likely to cause disruption, with NHS Trusts across Cheshire and Merseyside set to be significantly impacted.
We are urging the public to attend any planned appointments unless contacted directly by the NHS to reschedule, and to use the NHS 111 service if you need urgent help and aren’t sure what to do.
In other news, 3 July marked a pivotal moment for the NHS with the publication of the 10 Year Health Plan for England, which outlines the vision to make care more personalised, integrated and available closer to home through three major shifts: 1) Hospital to community 2) Analogue to digital and 3) Sickness to prevention.
Key to this ambition is an emphasis on neighbourhood health, which will bring professionals together to deliver care as locally as possible.
Across Cheshire and Merseyside, we’ve already seen the benefits of integrated teams working in local communities to support people with complex needs.
The 10 Year Plan’s commitment to expanding neighbourhood health gives us the opportunity to build upon this work with our health, local authority and voluntary sector partners - ensuring care is more accessible, personalised and preventative.
We also recognise the paramount importance of keeping people safe. The newly published Penny Dash review into patient safety presents clear insights and urgent recommendations for improving how we protect patients across the NHS. Safety must always remain the foundation of everything we do.
We all have a role to play with keeping each other safe too, as we were reminded recently by Alder Hey Children’s Hospital’s open letter to parents and carers about a rise in measles cases.
I want to reinforce the message from colleagues at Alder Hey and our public health leaders and urge everyone to check their MMR vaccination status.
Finally, as we approach one year on from the Southport tragedy, our thoughts remain with the families of Alice, Bebe, and Elsie Dot - and all those affected. This open letter from Sefton Council reflects the deep compassion and solidarity that defines our region. On 29 July, we will pause for a three-minute silence at 3pm to remember and reflect. Support is available on the Sefton Council website.
Best wishes,
Cathy Elliott
Chief Executive