Hospital chiefs in Bradford intend to take advantage of the Trust’s “strong” financial position to carry out a raft of improvements to patient care.

Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Bradford Royal Infirmary and St Luke’s Hospital, is on course to achieve a £4.5 million surplus during the 2011/12 financial year – £1.2 million ahead of plan.

The surplus means the Trust will now seek approval, subject to business cases, for major capital developments during 2012/13, including a second new ward block and accessible entrance, a neo-natal intensive care unit, an adult high dependency unit, a cardiac catheter laboratory and centralised decontamination.

Other developments already agreed include the introduction of electronic medical records, electronic rostering and electronic prescribing and a new midwifery-led unit at BRI.

The Trust’s expenditure on capital projects in 2011/12 to date is £5.386 million.

The Trust’s financial performance has also secured it a financial risk rating of three from foundation trust regulator Monitor, meaning the watchdog believes it is unlikely the foundation trust will breach its terms of authorisation.

Matthew Horner, acting director of finance, said delivering a surplus in excess of the plan for 2011/12 provided a strong foundation for what he conceded will be a financially challenging year in 2012/ 13.

“We will deliver the financial plan this year,” he said. “It gives us a real opportunity to invest in patient care and the fabric of the organisation next year.”

Mr Horner said the Trust had also signed off the contract with its commissioners for the health services it will provide during 2012/13 .

“This provides a very good base for us to move forward, but we need to recognise challenges ahead,” he said.

In order to do so, the Trust is looking at the configuration of its beds and carrying out a review of acute admissions and readmissions.

Chairman of the Trust, David Richardson, said: “It is a very strong position that we find ourselves in.”