Glastonbury's West Mendip Hospital has lost nearly half of its inpatient beds as NHS Somerset presses ahead with plans to reshape local healthcare across the county.

The community hospital's bed numbers were reduced from 30 to 16 in July 2025 under a "test and learn" scheme designed to free up space for other services and speed up discharges from acute hospitals. NHS Somerset's integrated care board (ICB) has now confirmed the trial will be extended for up to another year.

Health chiefs say the move supports the Government's ten-year NHS plan to treat more patients closer to home and reduce pressure on major sites such as Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton and Yeovil Hospital.

During the initial 12-week trial, beds were also reduced in Bridgwater and Frome. Instead of transferring patients into community hospital wards, the NHS and Somerset Council "spot purchased" care home beds for those needing long-term residential care.

According to NHS Somerset, the changes reduced waiting times for discharge and home-based care, with no significant increase in hospital readmissions. Survey data presented to Somerset Council's adults and health scrutiny committee on Thursday, 26 February, showed 100 per cent of respondents felt more confident at home and 96 per cent said they achieved their reablement goals.

But the reduction has sparked concern in Glastonbury.

Councillor Ewan Cameron (Liberal Democrat, Glastonbury) warned the town was in danger of becoming an "NHS desert".

He said: "We've seen West Mendip Hospital losing beds – and that doesn't happen in isolation. We've seen our three pharmacies drop to one over the last few years.

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"We've seen a 40 per cent increase in reported crime, we've got an excess of 250 people in the hard-to-reach caravan community, we've seen homelessness increase by 50 per cent in the last five years, and mental health issues are going through the roof.

"The people in Glastonbury would like to see health services developed in the community around the health and well-being hub – including a women's hub, an elective surgery hub and a community diagnostic centre.

"It's fantastic we've got a diagnostic centre in Bridgwater, but Glastonbury is still an hour away. We don't have a railway station, there is no direct bus service, and many people don't have a car."

NHS Somerset has said space created by bed reductions in other towns could be used for services such as chemotherapy, diagnostics and ambulatory care. It has not confirmed whether additional services will be introduced at West Mendip Hospital, and no final decision has been made on the permanent future of the beds.

The scrutiny committee is expected to receive a further update later this year.

Reporting: Daniel Mumby/LDRS

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