Health Board to seek community views on future arrangements for Meddygfa'r Sarn

09 October 2026

Hywel Dda University Health Board will engage with patients and local residents on proposed future arrangements for services currently provided by Meddygfa’r Sarn in Pontyates.

The four-week engagement period will open on Monday 2 November 2026 and close on Sunday 29 November 2026. During this time, patients, staff, and members of the wider community will be invited to share their views on a proposed merger between Meddygfa’r Sarn and Meddygfa Minafon. Meddygfa Minafon is a Health Board managed practice in Kidwelly, that will, as part of the proposal, continue to provide services from a branch surgery in Pontyates.

Earlier this year, the Health Board asked patients and the wider community to share their views about the future of Meddygfa’r Sarn. Feedback from that engagement highlighted the importance local people place on retaining GP services in Pontyates.

Following that engagement, the Health Board considered a number of potential options for Meddygfa’r Sarn. These included continuing as a standalone managed practice, dispersing patients to other practices, and undertaking a procurement exercise to seek a new provider.

The Health Board agreed to take forward the procurement option as part of work to identify a sustainable future for the practice. However, no bids were received through that process.

As a result, the future arrangements for Meddygfa’r Sarn were considered again through the Health Board’s vacant practice process. At its most recent meeting, the Vacant Practice Panel recommended a proposed model where Meddygfa’r Sarn would merge with Meddygfa Minafon and continue to provide services from its Pontyates site as a branch surgery.

Under this model, staffing would be managed across Meddygfa Minafon, Trimsaran branch surgery and the Pontyates branch surgery to support a more sustainable model for GP services while retaining local access in Pontyates.

The next phase of engagement will give patients, residents and the wider community an opportunity to share their views on the proposed merger and how the branch surgery could operate in future, including the services provided and opening arrangements.

Andrew Carruthers, Chief Operating Officer at Hywel Dda University Health Board, said:

“We are very grateful to everyone who took the time to share their views with us earlier this year. We heard clearly how important it is to the community to retain access to GP services locally in Pontyates.

“Following the outcome of the procurement process, the Vacant Practice Panel has recommended a model that would see Meddygfa’r Sarn merge with Meddygfa Minafon, while continuing to provide services from a branch surgery in Pontyates.

“The engagement opening on Monday 2 November will give patients and the wider community an opportunity to share their views on this recommendation and help inform the detailed arrangements for how services could operate in future.

“No final decision has been made. The Health Board will consider feedback from this next phase of engagement, and I would encourage people to take part when it opens and share their views on the recommendation.”

Further details of how people can take part, including opportunities to provide feedback, will be published when the engagement opens on Monday 2 November 2026.

Feedback from the engagement will help inform the next stage of the process. A report is expected to be considered by the Health Board early in 2027, with implementation of any agreed model planned from 1 April 2027.