The rebuilding of five hospitals at risk of collapse is to be prioritized as part of a £20bn investment in hospital infrastructure.
The hospitals – Airedale in West Yorkshire, Queen Elizabeth King’s Lynn in Norfolk, Hinchingbrooke in Cambridgeshire, Mid Cheshire Leighton in Cheshire and Frimley Park in Surrey – contain significant quantities of autoclaved reinforced concrete (RAAC).
RAAC is a type of lightweight concrete that was used in the construction of ceilings, floors, cladding and walls throughout the UK from the mid-1950s to the mid-1980s.
Safety concerns have intensified in recent years over the use of the material in public buildings, with warnings from the Government Property Office last year that it was now “outdated and susceptible to collapse”.
No decision has yet been made on which firms will carry out the work under the government’s New Hospital Programme, and contractors are unlikely to be announced before the next spending review.
However, Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said now the risks had come to light, the rapid rebuilding of hospitals was essential, with the first works expected to start in 2025.
“These five hospitals are in urgent need of repair and are being prioritized so that patients and staff can benefit from major new hospital buildings, equipped with the latest technology,” he said.
It also confirmed that the program was expected to represent more than £20bn of new investment in hospital infrastructure.
Two hospitals believed to be most at risk from the presence of RAAC have already been announced as part of the programme: West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds and James Paget Hospital in Norfolk.
However, the prioritization of the other five, along with the rising cost of construction materials, has meant that eight projects that had been completed towards the end of the decade will now not be built until after 2030, he said the Department of Health and Social Care. .
These are Royal Berkshire, North Devon, East Sussex, Charing Cross and Hammersmith, St Mary’s, Hampshire, Queen’s Medical Center and Nottingham City Hospital, and Royal Preston Hospital and Royal Lancaster Infirmary.
The department said the situation would be kept under review and every effort would be made to expedite the completion of the affected hospitals.
“We remain committed to all the schemes that have already been announced as part of the new hospitals program and will ensure that they all get the funding originally promised and we are on track to meet the manifesto commitment to build 40 new hospitals in England by 2030”. he said.
