Contact the Communications Team

The Trust's Communications team manages all media enquiries, plus requests for filming and photography throughout all our hospitals:

• University Hosital of North Durham
• Darlington Memorial Hospital
• Bishop Auckland Hospital
• Chester-le-Street Community Hospital
• Shotley Bridge Community Hospital
• Sedgefield Community Hospital
• Richardson Community Hospital
• Weardale Community Hospital
• Peterlee Community Hospital

If you have any media enquiries, please contact our  Communications department:

Email: cdda-tr.Communications@nhs.net or call 01325 74 3786

Or contact our Communications Manager, Jill Foggin on: jill.foggin@nhs.net: 01325 743786  or mobile 07717816628.

Or our Head of Communications and Charity, Gillian Curry on: gillian.curry1@nhs.net or mobile 07971895195.

Out of hours

If you have a media enquiry in the evening or at weekends, please call the switchboard number 01325 380100 and you will be directed to the on-call communications lead.

Photography and filming

Requests regarding photography, filming, or interviews with staff or patients, must be made through our communications office as above.

We place great emphasis on the need for the strictest confidentiality in respect of our patients. We will not divulge any information about a patient unless we are given permission from the individual, their guardian or their next of kin. All requests for interviewing/photographing patients must be made through the communications office. We strongly believe in respecting the rights of our patients to keep their clinical details confidential. We will only facilitate contact with patients if they are currently a patient within our hospitals.

Major incidents

Should a major incident occur, the Trust has a contingency plan that includes arrangements for the media. A press centre will be established and the media will be notified on arrival at the hospital. This will be set up for press conferences. You will be given regular updates on the situation and the opportunity for interviews, if appropriate. Depending on the type of incident, we will decide at the time whether photographs/filming will be permitted and how this will be facilitated.