Who are we consulting?

We are consulting with the people of Lincolnshire. This includes patients who have used, are currently using or could use in the future, services in Lincoln, Boston and Grantham hospitals. It also includes their families and carers; NHS staff; people who live or work in Lincolnshire; people in neighbouring areas; partner organisations; the community and voluntary sector and elected representatives.

We are also working closely with the Lincolnshire County Council Health Scrutiny Committee with regard to their oversight responsibilities in relation to public consultation exercises.

As well as consulting widely across our county, we are particularly interested in hearing from groups (often defined by protected characteristics) who might be most affected by the proposals. The Equality Impact Assessments we have done to date tell us these are:

• People who are economically disadvantaged
• People with a disability
• People who may be affected due to their age (i.e. they are in the older or younger age brackets)
• Carers (specifically of those in the above groups)

All the responses that we receive will be valued and will inform any formal decisions which will be made by NHS Lincolnshire CCG.