VIEWS of people in Wyre Forest are being sought about what they want in future from community health and care services.

Results of a consultation exercise by the Government - Your Health, Your Care, Your Say - will be taken into account for a White Paper on health and care services in the community.

Among issues people are being quizzed about are how they can look after themselves, how services in the future will be able to look after them and their families and who they want to deliver them.

Eamonn Kelly, acting chief executive of Wyre Forest PCT, said: "This exercise is a chance for everyone to have their say on how to make community-based health and social care services better for everyone.

"There are key issues to address, such as what we can do to help older people remain independent and stay in their own homes, how we invest effectively and tackle the root causes of ill-health, should people be allowed to register with a family doctor near their home and workplace and how do we ensure continuity of care."

He added: "More than five million people in England live more than 10 miles from a hospital and around 90 per cent of all the contact that people have with the NHS and care services takes place in the community.

"It, therefore, makes sense for us to focus our attention on these services and ask people for ideas on what they should look like in the future.

"People say they want a greater say in decisions about services that affect their lives and we want to see as many people as possible submit their views via the survey."

The survey can be done at www.nhs.uk/yoursay

It will take ten minutes to complete.