Healthwatch Reading

15/10/2026

What happens after the conversation matters most!

At the start of October, more than 75 people came together at our Racism in Care Forum in partnership with Alliance for Cohesion and Racial Equality - Acre and Healthwatch Wokingham Borough, to listen, learn and, most importantly, commit to action.

A huge thank you to our speakers, community and faith groups, partner organisations and everyone who completed our survey or shared their lived experiences. Your honesty, expertise and experiences helped shape the discussions and the priorities identified on the day.

The forum wasn't just about highlighting issues. Together, attendees agreed commitments and actions to help tackle racism and ensure everyone is treated with dignity, respect and fairness when accessing health and social care services.

Together with Healthwatch Wokingham Borough, we'll continue working with everyone to follow up on the commitments made and share progress. Real change happens when conversations lead to action and action leads to accountability.

You can now visit our event webpage below to view presentations from the forum, read the Anti-Racist Framework, view commitments and priority actions agreed by attendees and much more ⬇

Why we held the forumOn 1 October, more than 75 people attended our Racism in Care Forum, delivered through our Thinking Together community engagement model in partnership with Healthwatch Wokingham Borough and the Alliance for Cohesion and Racial Equality (ACRE).The forum brought together people wi...

08/10/2026

RNIB is looking for feedback from blind and partially sighted people about accessing healthcare information and services.

Please take a few minutes to share your views and help improve accessibility. More information can be found below ⬇

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Take this survey powered by surveymonkey.com. Create your own surveys for free.

06/10/2026

Could you help save a life? ❤️
Join this free online event to learn more about using 999 and 111, accessing urgent care and the simple steps anyone can take in an emergency.

Hear from ambulance service professionals and health experts: British Heart Foundation, South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust and the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives (AACE), and get your questions answered during the live Q&A.

📅 Tuesday 20 October
⏰ 6.30pm
💻 Online and free to attend

Find out more and sign up below 👇

https://www.scas.nhs.uk/public-talk-what-to-do-in-an-emergency/

#999

Join South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS), the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives (AACE) and the British Heart Foundation for a free online public talk on Tuesday 20 October at 6:30pm.

06/10/2026

Reminder: Hospital Discharge survey closes Friday 9th October

If you or someone you care for was discharged from hospital in the past year, we want to learn about your experience.

Your feedback will support a national project we are working on with Healthwatch England to understand what's working well and where improvements are needed.

Share your story by clicking on the link below ⬇
https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/hwreading/

Thank you to everyone who has taken part so far. 💙

05/10/2026

Please note Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust has changed its email addresses to .net. There is nothing you need to do. Emails sent to old .nhs.uk addresses will continue to be redirected for a limited time.

If you have any problems contacting the Trust after 5 October, call the switchboard on 0118 322 5111.

For more details see below ⬇

This week our Trust moved our email addresses to NHS.net. This means all our email addresses are now .net, instead of .nhs.uk.

There is nothing you need to do for the time being as emails sent to our current email addresses will be automatically redirected for a limited period of time. We will be working to update our website and other platforms with new contact information shortly.

If you have any trouble contacting anyone at the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust after Monday 5 October, please contact our Switchboard on 0118 322 5111.

05/10/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined us at the Ex-Gurkha Centre (The Forgotten British Gurkha charity) in Reading recently 💙

It was privilege for our team to meet 70-80 members of the Ex-Gurkha community, hear about your experiences of local health and care services, and discuss the challenges and opportunities around accessing healthcare.

A special thank you to Chandra Bahadur Budhathoki, Chairperson of the group, and everyone who gave us such a warm welcome and shared their valuable experiences. Your feedback will help us champion improvements to local services.

05/10/2026

Read our NHS App project summary report and infographic series, highlighting four key findings and priority actions based on what local people told us across Reading and Wokingham Borough.

Thank you to everyone who took part. If you have feedback about the NHS App, you can continue to share your experiences with us at any time by phone, email, through our online feedback form, or by leaving a comment below. Contact details can be found at the top of this page.

Read our summary report and view our infographics ⬇
https://www.healthwatchreading.co.uk/post/summary-report-and-infographics-series-published

We are pleased to share our summary report and infographic series from our NHS App project, in partnership with Healthwatch Wokingham Borough. Throughout the project, we listened to people across the borough and Reading about their experiences of using the NHS App. Through our joint survey, communit...

24/09/2026

We've published the final infographic in our NHS App project series, sharing what residents across Reading and Wokingham Borough told us about their experiences of using the NHS App and other digital healthcare services, at local community events.

While many people value the convenience of the NHS App, we were also told about the challenges of navigating multiple apps, websites and systems.

Take a look at our latest infographic to explore the experiences, insights and feedback shared with us by local residents, by clicking below ⬇
https://www.healthwatchreading.co.uk/post/one-app-to-rule-them-all-please

23/09/2026

What a fantastic day at the University of Reading Freshers’ Fair!

It was great to join up with Healthwatch Wokingham Borough and meet so many students, hear about your experiences and listen to what matters to you when it comes to health and care.

We also enjoyed meeting other local organisations and charities and learning more about the support available to students and the wider community.

A big thank you to the University of Reading and the Reading Students' Union for welcoming us and putting on such a great Freshers’ Fair.

And thank you to everyone who stopped to chat with us and shared their thoughts - your voice matters!

Wishing all students the very best for the new academic year. We hope it’s a happy, healthy and successful one!

22/09/2026

📣 Survey closes Thursday 24 September!

We want to hear about people’s experiences of racism and unequal treatment in health and social care.

We know sharing personal experiences isn’t always easy but your anonymous feedback can help us understand what’s happening and where change is needed.

The findings will help shape conversations with health providers, local councils, police, community leaders and other organisations on 1 October.

Your experience matters. Your voice matters.

Please take a few minutes to complete the survey and share it with your friends, family and wider networks to help us reach more people.

Thank you for helping us work towards health and social care that is fair, inclusive and respectful for everyone.

https://www.healthwatchreading.co.uk/post/racism-in-health-and-social-care-settings-we-want-to-hear-your-experiences

Have you experienced racism, discrimination, prejudice, or unequal treatment in health and social care settings? This could include treatment because of your race, ethnicity, religion, nationality, culture, disability, age, gender, sexuality or any other aspect of who you are. If so, we want to hear...