RESPONSES to the Future Fit consultation have more than doubled in a fortnight.

More than 5,700 responses have now been received via freepost and online.

The figure released at the end of July was just shy of 2,500, while at the start of the midpoint review a week earlier it was around 1,500.

Pam Schreier, communications and engagement lead for Future Fit, said the jump in responses was down to increased awareness of the programme.

She also said she expected to see “more than double” the current number by the time the consultation ended on September 11.

She said: “We would always expect it to peak around now, given the number of events, and we still expect another peak towards the end of the consultation.”

The consultation is asking people to comment on proposals to shake up healthcare and create a single emergency department at either the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital or the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford.

The other hospital would be the base for planned care.

Ms Schreier said the current response figure equates to around one per cent of the 500,000 population across Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin, and mid Wales who are served by the two hospitals.

“This is a good position for us to be in,” she said.

The consultation had previously been criticised by councillors sitting on the Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee for the lack of responses.

Members will meet again next Wednesday [AUGUST 15] and will ask health bosses to report how they were engaging with seldom-heard groups and for public feedback on the consultation process.

They will also receive a verbal report from the chairman of the Travel and Transport Committee on how Future Fit will impact on residents accessing the two hospitals, and West Midlands Ambulance Service is expected to attend to discuss how the programme will impact response times.

For a full list of forthcoming Future Fit events, and to take part in the consultation, visit https://nhsfuturefit.org