Over £600,000 in funding for a service supporting cancer patients in Sefton is set to be axed. The Cancer Navigator Service, based at the Southport Cancer Centre (also known as the Southport Macmillan Centre), provides non-medical support to patients diagnosed with cancer. The cuts are expected to take effect in April 2027.
Service offers broad non-clinical support
The service's offer "encompasses a broad range of services addressing the non-clinical impacts of a cancer diagnosis, including counselling, financial advice, emotional support, employment guidance, as well as assistance with navigating NHS services." It also works with GP practices to provide emotional counselling, financial advice and emotional support to patients and their families.
The navigator service is currently funded by the Southport and Formby Primary Care Network (SFPCN), which manages local funding across 14 GP practices in the borough. The funding was originally allocated to PCNs through national NHS funding used for staffing and baseline capacity across GP practices, and meeting NHS targets to improve patient access.
GP practices vote to end funding
A council report has said that due to the SFPCN facing major national funding cuts of £607,000, the 14 GP practices have voted that they can no longer pay for services which sit outside of their mandatory NHS core contract.
The report says: "It is with considerable regret that, despite recognising the value of the Southport Cancer Information Centre, in August, 2026 our member practices concluded unanimously that this service falls outside the core contractual requirements of the Network DES and is no longer affordable by the PCN. We have therefore given formal notice to the Centre of our intention to cease funding after March 31, 2027."
Service helped over 600 patients last year
According to the Southport Macmillan Centre, they helped over 600 cancer patients last year through the Cancer Navigator Service scheme in the Southport and Formby area. Without this funding, the Centre will no longer receive direct referrals from local GP practices to match patients with navigators for non-medical guidance, exercise classes, one-on-one or financial support.
They said their service will continue to operate "but our service offer will be greatly reduced." They are urging people to write to their local MP and GP and highlight the help that they have received from the service.
Liberal Democrat Cllr Dr John Pugh said the cuts will "virtually destroy the current service". He said: "With the government reportedly not prioritising health spending in the budget, finances locally remain rocky and something, we’re told, has to give. The GPs want to channel available money into practice-based services rather than to an independent provider like Macmillan. That’s controversial, but it has to be publicly argued for. It should not be a ‘GP only’ discussion. There are always serious debates to be had on the spending of taxpayer’s money, but better this happens in public than behind closed doors."
The plans for the cuts are set to come before the Sefton Council adult social care and health scrutiny committee on Tuesday, October 13.
