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Who we are and what we do

Healthwatch Milton Keynes is your local health and social care champion. We make sure NHS leaders and other decision makers hear your voice and use your feedback to improve care.

As an independent statutory body, we have the power to make sure NHS leaders and other decision makers listen to local feedback and improve standards of care. We're also a registered charity. 

If you use GPs and hospitals, dentists, pharmacies, care homes or other support services in your area, we want to hear about your experiences. We can also help you to find reliable and trustworthy information and advice. 

Last year, the Healthwatch network helped nearly a million people like you to have your say and get the support you need. Healthwatch Milton Keynes is part of a network of over 150 local Healthwatch across the country. We’re here to listen to the issues that really matter to people in Milton Keynes and to hear about your experiences of using local health and social care services. We’re entirely independent and impartial, and anything you share with us is confidential.

Healthwatch Milton Keynes uses your feedback to better understand the challenges facing the NHS and other care providers and we make sure your experiences improve health and care for everyone – locally and nationally. We can also help you to get the information and advice you need to make the right decisions for you and to get the support you deserve.

It’s really important that you share your experiences – whether good or bad, happy or sad. If you’ve had a negative experience, it’s easy to think there’s no point in complaining, and that ‘nothing ever changes’. Or, if you’ve had a great experience, that you ‘wish you could say thank you’. Remember, your feedback is helping to improve people’s lives. So, if you need advice, or you’re ready to tell your story – we’re here to listen.

Download our Easy Read document about what we do 

Our Mission

To champion people’s rights and access to high-quality health and social care.

Our Vision

People’s lived experiences are used to design and improve health and social care services.

Our Strategy 

To find out more about what how we achieve our mission statement, you can read our:

Strategy 2022-25

Our Business Plan for 2023-24

Our business plan 2023-24

Our Values 

Find out more about the key principles that guide our projects and activities. 

How we make decisions about our work 

We are required to have in place, and publish procedures for making relevant decisions.

'Relevant decisions' include:

  • which health and care services we will focus on in our work  the money we will spend on our activities,
  • whether to request information (e.g. submit a Freedom of Information request),
  • whether to publish a report or a recommendation on a service or organisation,
  • which services to 'enter and view; and when those premises are to be visited,
  • whether to refer a matter to Overview and Scrutiny Committee (e.g. where a service or provider doesn’t respond adequately to significant recommendations for improvement), whether to report a matter concerning our activities to another person.

You can learn about our decision making by reading our decision making policy.

People smiling

Our decision making policy

Our decision making policy

Our Governance 

We are registered with the Charity Commission as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO).

Read the CIO Constitution

Our Board of Trustees oversee our governance. They are responsible for policy and strategic decision-making. 

For health and social care organisations:

Your responsibility to co-operate with Healthwatch  

 

Enter and View

An Enter and View visit is an opportunity for Healthwatch MK to spot how services could improve by listening to the views of the people that use them, within criteria set out in the legislation.

Find out more

Health and social care in Milton Keynes

Where do we fit into the bigger picture of health and social care in Milton Keynes?

Find out more

Our Board

Find out more about our Board.

Meet our Board

Want to hear more from us? Sign up to receive our newsletter.

When you sign up, you'll be joining our Healthwatch Milton Keynes community. 

You'll receive our monthly eBulletin newsletter directly to your inbox. It contains news, events and opportunities to get involved in shaping health and care services in Milton Keynes.

If you want to take a more hands-on role, there's plenty of volunteering opportunities too. 

Join our community 

Our staff

Meet our staff and volunteers.

Meet the team