SOME children in Thurrock are waiting more than a year to see specialist doctors at Basildon Hospital after being referred by their GPs, it has been revealed.

Shocking figures, highlighted in a Thurrock Council scrutiny committee meeting, revealed a "disparity" in waiting times across Mid and South Essex with children waiting an "astonishing" 60 weeks for consultation at Basildon Hospital.

This is compared with a "pretty awful" 43 weeks at Southend Hospital and a 30 week wait at Broomfield Hospital.

The Mid and South Essex NHS Trust admitted it is experiencing "high demand" for children's services around Basildon, but is working through "a number of plans" to help reduce waiting times.

The figures were revealed by councillor Neil Speight, chair of Thurrock Council's People Overview and Scrutiny Committee, after he attended a meeting with the Mid and South Essex NHS Trust to discuss the future of neonatal services in the region.

He said: "One of the things mentioned during the meeting that I found of great concern is there is a significant disparity between the three regions of the Mid and South Essex Hospital Trust in relation to appointments for children who are referred by GPs.

"The disparity is such that the waiting time in Broomfield is 30 weeks, which is quite awful. In Southend it's 43 weeks, which is pretty awful, and in Thurrock [Basildon Hospital] I'm astonished to say it is 60 weeks, which I find totally unacceptable. There are going to be questions asked on this."

The Trust says it is aiming to slash waiting times across the region to 25 weeks by March next year.

Nicki Abbott, interim managing director of women's and children's services at Mid and South Essex NHS Trust, said: "We'd like to reassure parents and guardians that our dedicated staff are seeing young patients as soon as they can, and that they are seen in order of clinical priority."