A planning application has been submitted for a new community hospital in County Durham, which will see NHSPS lead the development
Planning permission has been submitted for a new hospital in Durham to replace Shotley Bridge Hospital.
The new community hospital is proposed to be located in Consett, 1.8 miles from the current Shotley Bridge site.
Shotley Bridge’s estate is considered outdated and would require significant investment to maintain, meaning the new Consett community hospital provides an opportunity to transform services around the population need.
The new hospital near Durham will offer expanded care capabilities
Plans for the new hospital include an inpatient rehabilitation ward, urgent treatment centre, expanded chemotherapy suite and diagnostic provision.
Hanna Hardy, acquisition lead at NHS Property Services advising on the project said: “This is an exciting milestone for this project to submit the Reserved Matters Application and builds on many years of work by local partners.
“We look forward to continuing to work with County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust as well as our contractors, technical and planning advisors and architects as we move into the formal approvals process with New Hospitals Programme and the next stage of design.”
The Consett community hospital development is part of the Government pledge to build more hospitals
Programme manager at County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust, Jane Curry added: “This an exciting development for the local population in Derwentside and the wider County Durham healthcare community, it is part of the Government pledge to build or significantly expand 48 new hospitals. Shotley Bridge has been identified as a Cohort 2 development.
“We look forward to continuing discussions with our NHS colleagues and the local communities and progressing the scheme over the next few years.”
The Trust will also be supported by planning consultants DPP who will be working closely with the local planning authority.
Simon Woods, construction manager for Tilbury Douglas Construction said: “The submission of the formal planning application is a major milestone for the project.
“Our team and design partners have worked with the Trust and planners to provide a scheme that will benefit the local community for many years to come.
“Construction of the new hospital will benefit the local area, both during the construction period through new employment and local investment and throughout the life of the building.”
Creating social value and a sense of local pride
Designed by specialist healthcare architects, Medical Architecture, director Lianne Knotts commented on the new hospital near Durham: “From very early design stages, the importance of this new hospital was clear, and we set out to design a place that inspires a sense of local pride.
“The building is welcoming to all and will create an environment for care that promotes wellbeing and recovery. Whilst enabling the highest current standards of healthcare, it has the flexibility to adapt to the future health needs of the community.
