Contractor appointed for county's major 'Future Fit' hospitals revamp
A construction firm has been appointed to carry out work to transform the county's emergency hospitals.
Shrewsbury & Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH) said Integrated Health Projects (IHP) has been selected as its design and construction partner for the 'Future Fit' Hospitals Transformation Programme (HTP).
It said the decision had been taken following 'a robust procurement process', and marked a 'significant milestone' in the bid to complete the long-awaited re-organisation of Royal Shrewsbury Hospital (RSH) and Princess Royal Hospital in Telford.
IHP is a joint venture between VINCI Building and Sir Robert McAlpine.
The trust said IHP would provide support as it prepares to take the HTP plans through the final stage of the national approval process.
Preparatory works are expected to start on the RSH site from this month, with hoardings and site cabins being developed.
Under the plans RSH will become home to the county's only 24-hour A&E, along with consultant-led women and children's services – which will relocate from PRH.
PRH will become the centre of planned care for the county, while both hospitals will have 'enhanced urgent care services'.
SaTH says the plans will provide "high quality, sustainable care and fewer delays for treatment for everyone, at two thriving hospital sites".
Dr Ed Rysdale, consultant in emergency medicine and clinical lead for the Hospitals Transformation Programme, said: “I’m excited that we are moving ever closer to delivering our vision of two thriving hospital sites. This is so much more than building works, this is about fundamentally improving care for all the communities we serve through better pathways and joined-up care between our services.
“This is an important step forward for the programme and it is exciting to be able to welcome our contractors onsite as they prepare for the necessary enabling works.”
Louise Barnett, chief executive of The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, said: “We are pleased to be working with IHP who bring a wealth of experience in large-scale construction, as well as offering genuine opportunities for local businesses. We will be continuing to keep local communities and clinicians involved at every stage of the works, to help design a positive experience for everyone.”
John Roberts, managing director at VINCI Building, said: “We are delighted to be selected as the design and construction partner for the Hospitals Transformation Programme (HTP) and we are looking forward to working with the trust to deliver this high-quality transformation programme for patients, which will provide significant improvements and benefits.”
Garry Bowker, regional managing director at VINCI Building, added: “In addition to the clinical benefits that the completed scheme will provide, we also want to ensure this project delivers long term social value outcomes for the surrounding local communities and people.”
Throughout the works, which are expected to take several years, patients are encouraged to follow signage on the site, or view the trust’s website for the latest updates and changes to the site.
