Event organiser Jacqui Wilding of Bronllys Well Being Park has said she has been left “totally infuriated” as Powys Teaching Health Board (PTHB) informed her this morning that they would not be attending the annual Health & Well-Being Forum in Talgarth tonight.

The Health Board have attended the last three annual forums in Talgarth but say “it would not be appropriate for a representative of the Health Board to attend as a panel member this year.”

Director of Corporate Governance for PTHB, Helen Bushell, was due to be part of tonight’s panel, but PTHB have today decided that they will have no representative in attendance.

Their reasoning comes with the launch of their consultation on health cuts, which involves the proposal of cutting hospital beds in Powys.

At 11am this morning (September 24) Jacqui Wilding and Bronllys Well Being Park, who host the forum, received an email from PTHB.

The email read: “We greatly value our relationship with Bronllys Well Being Park and recognise the important role that the Forum plays in promoting discussion about future health and wellbeing. We are also grateful for the efforts you have made to clarify that the Forum is independent of Powys Teaching Health Board's consultation process.

“Having reflected carefully on the position since our earlier exchanges, we have reluctantly concluded that it would not be appropriate for a representative of the Health Board to attend as a panel member this year.

“This decision is not a reflection on BWBP, the Forum, or the intentions behind the event. Rather, it relates to the timing of the Forum in the context of the Health Board's governance process and proposed consultation launch. The Health Board is due to receive and consider a consultation readiness report at its meeting on 30 September, including whether to proceed with a formal consultation on future health and care services. Until the Board has had the opportunity to consider and take assurance on that matter, we feel it is important that we do not participate in discussions that could be perceived as anticipating, influencing, or pre-empting the Board's decision-making process or the subsequent launch of consultation if assurance tests are met.

“We are also mindful that, given the understandable public interest in the future of local services, attendance by a Health Board representative at this stage could unintentionally create confusion about the status of any proposals or the appropriate routes through which views should be expressed should a formal consultation proceed. Our intention is to ensure that any future consultation is conducted in a fair, transparent and consistent manner, with everyone across Powys having access to the same information and opportunities to engage.

“We appreciate that this may be disappointing and we are sorry for any inconvenience that our decision may cause, and we remain committed to our broader partnership with BWBP.”

Outraged by the news and the timing of their withdrawal, Jacqui Wilding of Bronllys Well Being Park, and organiser of the evening’s forum told the Brecon & Radnor Express: “The health board have attended every other year, including last year when it was pretty emotive because of the minor injury closures. But this year, when it’s even more emotive, they have decided not to attend.

“It’s absolutely ridiculous. Here they are saying they should not be in front of the public because they’ve got an ongoing consultation going ahead and it might get confusing. No, it was the same last year with the consultation for the minor injuries units going ahead at the same time and they turned up.

“It’s just an excuse not to attend. They are scared to be in front of the public, who they serve, and who should actually should be able to ask questions and queries.

“We never let any of our panel members get badgered by the public,” continued Jacqui. “If anyone is getting a bit of a nuisance we say, ‘sorry we’ve heard from you, thank you very much, moving on,’ but the fact they have sent this letter telling us that they’re not coming is absolutely criminal.

“They get paid extortionate wages, have made a £44 million deficit for the organisation anyway, and are making complete and utter ridiculous plans for the future for us in this area and they haven’t got the front to appear in front of people to answer questions. It is really annoying.

“The annual forum is about health and wellbeing. It’s about all the public being able to talk about all different things, not just hospital beds in Powys, and obviously that is very poignant at the moment, but they should have the guts to come and field off questions.

“They don’t deserve to have their jobs if they cannot, as an executive, stand up in front of the public and answer questions. They don’t deserve their salaries if they cannot be questioned and queried by the public.

“I think they are trying to keep us sweet because we (Bronllys Well Being Park) have got 750 members, and they use us in their tick box system saying they have dealt with the public, so they are trying to be very polite saying they couldn’t do this and couldn’t that but they still support us. No, they don’t support us. They have never supported us properly. They meet with us, they don’t support us or do anything for us.

“I am totally infuriated that they have had the audacity to say on the day of the health forum, that they have attended for the past three years, that they are not coming and to make excuses because they are afraid to be in front of the public. We are paying mega bucks to executives that cannot face the public.

Clair Swailes Chief Executive of Pavo, Katie Blackburn Regional Director for Powys from Llais, and Gareth Ratcliffe as Chair of Bannau Brycheiniog National Park Authority will be part of tonight’s panel.