Construction of new West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds on track for 2030 – despite National Audit Office report questioning whether all new hospitals will be built by promised date
Plans to rebuild the ‘structurally unsound’ West Suffolk Hospital remain on track despite a report suggesting not all new hospitals pledged by the Government will be completed within the promised timeframe.
West Suffolk Hospital NHS Foundation Trust said it should have a new facility, in Bury St Edmunds, by 2030, as it remains a priority project within the National Hospital Scheme (NHS).
However, a recent damning report by the National Audit Office (NAO), suggested not all of the planned hospitals, promised by the Government, will be delivered within the time frame.
It said only 32 will be finished by 2030, with eight more coming after.
The report said that West Suffolk Hospital was one of seven that are structurally unsound due to defective concrete.
The NAO said that 41 hospitals were built using reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), which has been likened to an Aero chocolate bar, and reportedly has a lifespan of about 30 years.
A weaker form of concrete, it was used between the 1960s and 1980s to build hospitals and schools.
There have been warnings over ‘catastrophic’ consequences over using the material, such as crumbling ceilings.
The report found seven hospitals used the material in its entirety, including West Suffolk Hospital.
West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust estimated it will have spent £65m on RAAC maintenance over the four-year period of 2021-2025, according to the report.
The NAO stated: “The Government has committed to eradicate RAAC from the NHS estate by 2035 and allocated £685 million over five years up to 2024-25 to mitigate immediate safety risks.”
All hospitals built entirely using RAAC will be replaced by 2030, the report noted, but the changes meant not all 40 of the planned hospitals would be finished by the deadline.
The NHS originally expected that replacing RAAC would be expensive, with estimated costs of around £1bn per scheme, but would no longer need to complete work on eight hospital within the time frame.
West Suffolk Hospital was built in the early 1970s and the trust has been aware of its use in the site since 2010, with ‘extensive use of RAAC beams in the ceilings and RAAC panels in the walls’.
West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust has made efforts to reinforce it, but the NAO said the risk of ceiling beams falling cannot be ruled out. As a result, it also had to install fail-safe devices.
A spokesman for the trust said it continues to assess the situation, and when an issue is uncovered, it is tackled immediately.
About 81 per cent of roof planks have fitted with end-bearing support, he added, while 94 per cent have been installed with zinc anodes.
In addition, no planks have failed.
The entire hospital is planned for demolition and reconstruction under the New Hospital Scheme.
It, alongside James Paget Hospital in Norfolk, remain some of the worst-affected hospitals by RAAC.
It was the only hospital in Suffolk mentioned in the report.
The rebuild of West Suffolk Hospital will provide a ‘fit for purpose modern healthcare facility’ which aims to improve both patient and staff experience.
Craig Black, executive director of resources for West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust said: “Our plans for a new healthcare facility continue to progress. We are currently preparing the outline business case, and we are on target to complete this project before the end of the decade.
“The safety of patients, staff, and visitors is our priority and we have always followed expert, independent advice when it comes to the management of our buildings.
“We are well advanced in undertaking significant and planned estates maintenance programmes to support our RAAC infrastructure.
“A rolling programme to regularly monitor and check the RAAC planks, using the latest research and technology, will remain in place until we move to a new hospital site.”
MP Jo Churchill met with Health Secretary Steve Barclay to discuss the new build last month.
A planning application for the hospital build on the Hardwick Manor site was approved at the end of last year.
Mrs Churchill said the building was at ‘the front of the queue’.
