Luton Irish Forum will run the new Healthwatch group and act as a watchdog for patients, carers and the public.
The charity, which was established to support the needs of the local Irish community, was awarded the Healthwatch contract by Luton Borough Council on Thursday after a tendering process.
As part of the charity’s new role from April 1, the group will be able to influence policy, planning and delivery of health and social care services by listening to the views and experiences of residents.
Pam Garraway, Corporate Director for Housing and Community Living, said: “We are delighted that a wellknown local charity that is clearly passionate about improving the lives of the whole Luton community has been selected to run Healthwatch.
“Being completely independent will help ensure services users and carers will have a bigger say about how health and social care services are run in Luton.
“Luton Irish Forum was selected as they were best placed to ensure that residents’ voices are heard, including some of the most hard to reach groups in our communities.”
Under NHS reforms, local authorities now have responsibility for public health and improving the health of their population and must establish a local Healthwatch to be the new consumer champion for publicly funded health and social care.