Work on RAAC hospitals will continue “at pace,” the Government has confirmed as it publishes details of the scope and approach it will take in its review of the New Hospital Programme.
Due to the “substantive safety risks” associated with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), the seven hospitals pulled into the NHP programme because their existing buildings comprised entirely or predominantly RAAC will fall outside the scope of the review. These are: Airedale General Hospital, Frimley Park Hospital, Hinchingbrooke Hospital, James Paget Hospital in Great Yarmouth, Leighton Hospital, Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Kings Lynn and West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds.
Also falling outside of the scope of the review are schemes that have approved full business cases, which includes five projects in Dorset - Alumhurst Road Children’s Mental Health Unit and St Ann’s Hospital (Dorset Healthcare University NHS Foundation Trust), Poole Hospital and Royal Bournemouth Hospital (University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust) and Dorset County Hospital (Dorset County Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust).
A further four schemes that are almost complete will be supported to continue and will also fall outside of the review: Brighton 3Ts Hospital (University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust), CEDAR Programme (Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust), National Rehabilitation Centre (Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust) and Oriel Eye Hospital (Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust). The Government points out that because these projects were already in the later stages of development prior to the NHP being announced and therefore it does not consider them as part of the programme.
In scope will be all remaining hospitals in the New Hospital Programme without full business case approvals for their main build phase (scroll down for the full list).
The Government says the review is necessary to put the NHP onto a “realistic, deliverable and affordable” footing. It will be led by the Director for Delivery, Performance and Assurance in the DHSC New Hospital Programme sponsor team, along with senior colleagues from the NHS England delivery team and HMT. A steering group, including representation from HMT, Cabinet Office and the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA), will be convened to oversee the review, directed by the senior responsible owner for the New Hospital Programme, the Chief Financial Officer in NHS England, the Director General for Finance in DHSC and senior officials in HMT, reporting to the Permanent Secretary of DHSC. The review will conclude as soon as possible and will be submitted to the Secretary of State for DHSC and the Chief Secretary to the Treasury for consideration.
Scope of the review
The review will assess the appropriate schedule for delivery for schemes in the NHP in the context of overall constraints to hospital building and wider health infrastructure priorities, while also looking at where improvements can be made. It will present a full range of options to be taken forward for the overall size and ambition of the programme to provide a clear approach for the programme going forward.
The review will feed into the spending review process, where decisions on the outcome will be taken in the round and the Government will confirm the outcome of the review as part of that process.
Specific projects in scope of the review:
Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital
Charing Cross Hospital and Hammersmith Hospital, north-west London
Derriford Emergency Care Hospital, Plymouth
Eastbourne District General, Conquest Hospital and Bexhill Community Hospital
Hampshire Hospitals
Hillingdon Hospital, north-west London
Kettering General Hospital
Leeds General Infirmary
Leicester General Hospital Royal Infirmary
Milton Keynes Hospital
Musgrove Park Hospital, Taunton
North Devon District Hospital, Barnstaple
North Manchester General Hospital
Princess Alexandra Hospital, Harlow
Queen’s Medical Centre (QMC) and Nottingham City Hospital
Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading
Royal Lancaster Infirmary
Royal Preston Hospital
Shotley Bridge Community Hospital, Durham
Specialist Emergency Care Hospital, Sutton
St Mary’s Hospital, north-west London
Torbay Hospital
Watford General Hospital
Whipps Cross University Hospital, north-east London
Women and Children’s Hospital, Cornwall
