24/10/2013 Look East - West

Welcome to Thursday's Look East Spotlight on the quality of care in

our hospitals. The wealth `` health watchdogs ranks each one before the

inspections begin. Clearly, issues like the loss of

nurses from our hospitals is having a big impact on patient care.

One of our most iconic footwear brands is sold in a deal worth 300

million. Why the launch of this year's poppy

appeal means so much to one of our soldiers.

And, the lifeblood of our soil ` how the humble worm needs a little TLC.

Good evening. First tonight. How good is your

hospital when it comes to quality of care? The health watchdog the Care

Quality Commission has today given each hospital in the country a score

based on the risk it poses to patients. One is the worst, six is

the best. Why? Well, to help it prioritise which hospitals to

inspect first. Northamptonshire has fared the worst in this region.

We'll hear from the health watch group there, after this report from

Mike Cartwright: the health care we receive is under scrutiny.

Northampton general rank among the highest risk hospitals. Criticised

heavily in past inspections for how it dispense medicines and for having

too few staff to keep patients say. We have two treat more people in the

community, that is why Urgent Care Centres are great.

But we also need to address some of the issues about poor equipment and

about lack of resources in our hospitals. Issues like the loss of

nurses from our hospitals is having a big impact on patient care.

Northampton general told us, we know there are areas where we need to

take action. The Care Quality Commission, careful

to stress these bands `` bands are for their guidance, and are not the

hospital. Final rating. We have a screening tool that brings

together a whole lot of different information, and gives us the

impression of what the level of risk is in different hospitals.

That lets us prioritise which hospitals we will go to first. But

we will never make our judgement about an individual hospital before

we have done a full inspection. The QE2 in Kings Lynn rated at `` as

a high risk hospital. Kettering general is in the second worst band.

Six of our trusts are ranked in bands three to four.

For Peterborough city Hospital, good news is rare. It has been criticised

for on the use and spiralling debts. We continue to look at the issues we

know are challenging within our environment. So we are particularly

focusing on urgent care, patients coming in as emergency amid ``

admissions, and the impact that has on our patients coming in for the

elective surgery where we have to cancel patients. It is good news for

Peterborough and for the local people. My dad has been here a

couple of times and the care he got was amazing. The better band at

hospitals will be in `` inspected at a later date. The high risk

hospitals will be inspected among the first.

All trusts will be rated between inadequate and outstanding by the

end of 2015. We want an NHS that is caring,

efficient and responsive, and the more robust inspection approach that

the CQC has announced is very welcome. HealthWatch Northants wants

to work with the hospital and the CQC to make sure that the inspection

is a success, is robust, and really moves towards service improvement.

We will talk about how you do that in a second, but of course that

Hampton show has two main hospitals, and they are in the worst two

categories. Our people in the county being Phil

Bennion HS? There is clearly a lot to do, there has been a lot of focus

on Kettering General Hospital, it is in the band two category so it ``

its inspection will come after the set of inspections in Northampton.

HealthWatch Northants is a new organisation, we are here to

champion the rights and needs of patients and people who use health

and social care in the county, and we have been flagging up with the

NHS in Northamptonshire are concerns about the quality of health care. We

know that Kettering General has told us that after care for her patience

is no better, that operations were only cancelled at short notice

because of a busy spell last year, so they feel they are improving but

what do you think they need to do to live their ratings? There is

obviously a big issue around waiting times at both hospitals in accident

and emergency. Both hospitals are not meeting the Government's

standards for four our weight. The key for patients is knowing that

when they go into a hospital, they are going to get a quality

experience, they are going to be well looked after, that their

clinical outcomes are good to be improved, and that their care is

going to be safe. Those have to be the bottom line, and those are the

issues that we are concerned with. Police investigating the murder of a

man in Luton earlier this week have revealed he died from a stab wound

to the heart. Leonard Flower ` a retired computer analyst ` was

attacked while working in the garage of his home in Carnegie Gardens on

Tuesday afternoon. Detectives from the major Crime Unit have arrested a

35`year`old man who is currently receiving medical treatment in

hospital for a hand injury. A man has been arrested in

connection with a road collision last night in which a woman died.

The three`vehicle crash happened on the A10 between Little Thetford and

Stretham just before eight o'clock. The victim has been named as

25`year`old Tania Macedo from Ely. A man and a three`year`old girl were

also injured. A 43`year`old man is being held on suspicion of driving

while unfit through either drink or drugs.

One of the region's most iconic footwear brands, Doc Martens, has

been sold in a deal worth ?300 million. The Northamptonshire firm's

parent company, R Griggs Group, has been bought by Permira which owns

New Look and Hugo Boss. Our reporter Neil Bradford is outside the factory

in Wollaston for us now ` Neil, what more do we know about this deal

The deal brings to an end more than half a century of family ownership.

Doc Martens was founded in 1960 but they have been making shoes in

Northamptonshire since 1901. As part of this ?300 million deal, Permira

now owned that family firm, and the perpetual rights to Doc Martens

This deal will take several months to complete, we understand it will

not be complete until January next year, and the family will retain a

20% stake in the company. Have we got any indication of how this

takeover might affect jobs? The company is in a good financial

position. Last year it posted pre`tax profits of around ?15

million. It is one of the leading exporters from our region and its

products are now sold in more than 63 countries. It employs around 700

people globally, 350 of them in the UK, and the chief executive has

today promised that this deal will not mean any job losses. To have

paid such a big price for a company based in Northamptonshire is a big

vote of confidence. The family, who were the previous owners, are

keeping a 20% stake in the business so there is some continuity, and

there is absolutely no reason nor desire to change the strategy of the

company, nor its value is not its culture.

What more do we know about this company that has taken over? It is

one of your's biggest private equity firms, with ?22 billion worth of

investments including the designer Brand Hugo Boss and the high street

fashion brand New Look. It is likely to want to expand. `` Doc Martens'

presence online and in stores, particularly in the far east. They

have clearly spotted an opportunity, that is why they have paid such a

high price. But there will be mindful that no matter how iconic

Doc Martens is, fashions do change from time to time.

A karting company in Peterborough has been found guilty of health and

safety breaches, almost four years after an accident in which a

teenager died. The company Peterborough Raceway Ltd pleaded

guilty today at Peterborough Crown Court. Council investigators found

there had been a lack of health and safety risk assessments. The company

will be sentenced next month. An independent report says Norfolk

County Council could face a bill of ?25 million if it doesn't go ahead

with an incinerator in King's Lynn. It comes after the Government

withdrew its grant of ?169 million last week.

Those are altogether until the entity `` until

they educate their fans. Although the cloud still hangs over football,

it is time for action. Still to come tonight: We're live on

the red carpet at the Sir Bobby Breakthrough Ball. We'll be talking

to the Norwich City majority shareholder Delia Smith.

Do we need another runway in the South East of England. And where

should it go? Two questions being discussed by MPs at Westminster

today. Final decisions won't be made until after the next election. Our

political correspondent Andrew Sinclair has been monitoring the

debate. There one Particular Place that some

MPs quite keen on? That place is Boris Island. Many say that the

scheme is said to be impractical and very expensive. It could cost as

much as ?70 billion. But in the debate on whether Heathrow should be

allowed to expand, there was quite a lot of support for building a hub

airport of the tens `` off the coast of Essex on the Thames. There has

not been a single objection raised. Not cost, not sea`level, there is

not a single objection that is a show stopper. I do not believe the

most is mystic forecast for the time it would take, the expense it would

take and so on. We lack imagination in this country. We struggled over

the Channel Tunnel, we struggled over the real link to the Channel

Tunnel. Why cant we realise that London deserves a good airport.

There were some MPs who thought Boris Island was a good idea.

Stansted Harvey got a mention. The chairman of the Select Committee

said that they had looked very carefully at the idea of expanding

Stansted but had decided that new runways on their own will not

provide a long`term solution to the specific problem of hub capacity. It

is a sign that the debate is ever so slightly shifting away from

Stansted. The demand now is to build a hub airport, not just new runways,

and it seems that Heathrow and Boris Island either main contenders.

A former solider who was badly injured in Afghanistan has been

helping to launch the Poppy Appeal in this region today. Sam Jack, who

lives in Stansted, was not expected to survive when he was hit by a

bullet. He says the Royal British Legion helped him to get through it.

This report from Gareth George. Sam Jack's former commanding officer

pins a poppy on his chest. He helped to launch the Poppy Appeal today and

is lucky to still be with us. During the two are in Afghanistan he was

hit by a ricocheted bullet fired from comrades's gun. The next thing

I remember is waking up in Birmingham hospital. I took of a

cushy to the head, it went into my eye. It stops just a millimetre away

from my brain. I am very lucky to be alive. The British Legion helps all

sorts of soldiers, old, still serving, the help that they gave is

second to none. It is really encouraging. Sam was in a

particularly grave condition when he left at the Ghana standard was

packaged up and put onto a plane. The percentage of him surviving was

actually pretty low `` when he left Afghanistan. Dizzy and confident,

smiling and happy as a real result for us. He has received a lot of

support from the Royal British Legion. He is one of our key

fundraisers and helps us to go round and generate some of the funds for

them. As well as remembering some people who died in past conflicts,

they are now helping service men and women injured in Afghanistan and

Iraq. They are young soldiers who are predominantly involved in the

actor will like to look forwards to. The British Legion has a remit to

book after not only the family but also the dependents, the wife,

children, but sometimes even the parents, right the way through long

time. It is hoped that stories like Sam Jack's will help more people

than ever before through this year's Poppy Appeal.

The widow of the former Ipswich Town manager Sir Bobby Robson has been in

Bury St Edmunds today opening new cancer facilities at the St

Edmundsbury Hospital. The Lady Elsie Robson Unit is designed to provide

better care for patients who might be suffering from breast cancer.

Tonight Lady Elsie will go to a fundraising ball. More on that in a

moment. But first Kevin Burch has this report.

Lady LCC is that she still has a soft spot for Suffolk. `` Lady Elsie

Roberts on. Last year she performed the official opening after an

upgrade in screening. Now things have improved even more, the

?250,000 cost covered through a legacy left to the friends of the

hospital. What is different is that it is especially built round the

problems of patients with breast problems. What we have done is

integrated to facilities to allow our patients to be seen seamlessly

whilst all the time preserving their dignity and privacy. Cancer seems to

be touching so many people nowadays but one thing that the trustees felt

was that it was such a large amount of money that we wanted to be able

to fund something that we would not necessarily normally be able to do.

Sir Bobby Robson fought cancer five times, but in 2009, 17 years after

his first diagnosis, the long and courageous battle finally ended. The

legend was gone, but the legacy lives on. Through moments like this.

When I was asked if my name could be attached to the special unit I was

humbled. They are so dedicated, it is wonderful. So much work goes on.

Dedication and love, I think. Have to put that in. I bet you thought

you were not going to get emotional, what happened? I know. I

just saw it and thought, that's main. I'm so happy to be associated

with what they do here. It is not just about bricks and mortar, they

say, it is about the people who work within the bricks and mortar, people

who lead the `` who Lady Elsie Roberts and described as wonderful.

And Delia Smith is at the Apex Theatre tonight. This is an example

of football doing good, isn't it? Indeed it is. It is great to see

people arriving and giving support to it. How well did you know Sir

Bobby Robson? We have been living in Suffolk for 42 years, so he and his

brother owned our local newspaper shop and his nephew played cricket

with Michael at the local cricket club. But also Sir Bobby Robson was

very kind to Michael and me when we became board members and give us a

lot of help and guidance. He was a great guy. Have you had a chance to

speak to his widow today? I have not. I have only just wait to her.

We have kept in touch, we are very good friends. This is very

important, this work with screening for breast cancer. It is incredibly

important, and what this is about tonight is that everybody can help,

everybody can get something, because the Serb be Auction and Ball is

online `` Sir Bobby Robson option and ball is online. What we are

trying to do is to get everybody to help out and come online and spend

some money and raise more money for the fund, which is doing such a good

job. If I can drop the ball for a second, you have been at Norwich

City now for ten years or more as a majority shareholder. How would you

enjoying life? About 20 actually! I was being nice! No, we are having

lots of fun, we love it. Michael and I are very passionate, as you well

know, and we love every minute of it. It is on a night like this and

every body comes together that you realise that whatever... On the

surface, we're competitive, but all football supporters support each

other and it is nice to be here tonight and to be doing that. Your

chief executive said the other day that he was embarrassed by how you

the league. How do you feel about it? I'm here tonight, Stewart, to

talk about the Sir Bobby Robson fundraising, not how I feel about

the football. So, shall we talk about that? Very good. You'll be

spending lots of money bidding on things tonight, will you? I'm sure

we will, and I'm sure everybody well. We are going to get a record

amount of money. Because everybody in this country, whoever they are,

once together `` wants to give a hand and help to fight cancer. Thank

you for being with us. Goodbye. Now a few fascinating facts about

earthworms. They are blind, they have a brain, and up to five hearts.

And, of course, they are vital for healthy soil and healthy crops. Now

a project is underway to find out more about worm welfare, because the

worm needs your help. Anna Todd has been digging with a group of

schoolchildren from Peterborough. Churning and twirling the soil,

earthworms are like little tractors, miniature plays the underground. But

because they are so busy working day and, it's hard to keep tabs on how

they are doing. Which is why the Big Worm Dig is so important.

We need you to gather around a little bit. See if you can find any

worms. The names are all a bit Harry Potter. The soil eater, the water

dwellers. And the kids love them. There are different to other

animals, they have no legs. Remind you know that they are all

earthworms, but you do not know what type of earthworms they are, so I

like the surprise of it. Why are you washing the worm? To see what they

are like without the soil. It is a soil litre. What does it do? Judging

from its name I think it eats soil. We have the worm camera ready,

hopefully they will come to the surface. So far we wait, and wait.

Let's get down and dirty with some worms of wisdom. They have no

lungs, they breathe through their skin. They are hermaphrodites, when

they mate both worms have babies. Without worms, truly greedy? ``

we'll really be? We would be nowhere for oils dumber `` we would be

nowhere. It's worms that really helped to break things down. I have

to say, I'm not too keen, and I know I'm not the only one, but we should

all love worms, they bring life to the land in more ways than one.

I can hardly believe that, 2.5 metres, for a worm! You can find out

more about the project at riverford.co.uk/bigwormdig. People

will be sending me photographs of worms that 2.5 metres long! I do not

want them, but if anybody has seen one we would love to hear from you.

I do not mind creepy crawlies, but a two metre long worm, they do not

know. We have had light winds and sunny skies, does not get better

than that. But there are changes on the way.

You can see this area of cloud moving and across the West Country.

It will bring some windy conditions and some rain across the region

overnight tonight, but at the moment we finish the day with clear skies

and light winds. But those winds will freshen overnight into the

early hours of tomorrow morning. There is not going to be a great

deal of rain on that front, mainly light and patchy. It will not really

get here until the early hours of tomorrow morning. Increasing amounts

of cloud, this rain coming through into the early hours, to or three

o'clock. Tracking eastwards overnight. Most of it will be late

and patchy, but there may still be the ought patchy burst. `` ought

heavy burst. Moderate to fresh breeze, it will be windy through

tomorrow. First thing tomorrow morning, some wet weather to clear,

but it should get away quite quickly. By mid to late morning most

places will be dry. There will be a bit of a legacy of cloud left

behind, but quite a warm ear mass. Temperatures may well claim to

around 17 or 18 degrees. Still quite breezy, but some sunny spells

developing into the afternoon. Looking ahead, Monday is a bit of a

concern. A deepening area of low pressure moving and off the

Atlantic. What does that mean for us? That had been some strong,

possibly damaging winds. At the moment there is some uncertainty

about the tract and strength of the low. This looks like the most

certain track. We are to the southern half of that and that could

mean some strong winds are part of the region. But we are quite a few

days out, it still late Thursday. Keep your eye on the forecast as the

story unfolds. What about the weekend? There is certainly an early

warning for the wind. That is for Sunday evening into Monday morning.

It will continue to strengthen, it certainly looks quite blustery by

Sunday. For Saturday, quite a lot of dry weather around. A strong

south`westerly breeze with some strong gust is. Some strong showers

around for Sunday and some of those could be on the heavy side. Keep

your eye on the forecast for Monday, because no doubt things will change,

but it does look like we will `` likely that we will see some wet and

windy weather. Thanks for your company. We'll see

you tomorrow night. This is Malcolm, who owns Iceland.

He's the one that's going to present us with

the ten grand. When we win it.