Work to start on £28 million new wing at Bradford Royal Infirmary

The go-ahead for the investment programme has been sanctioned by the hospital’s board of directors.

It is set to transform the hospital’s children’s services and provide a state-of-the art intensive-care unit and should be ready by autumn 2016. It has been designed with patients at its heart, said Professor Clive Kay, boss of Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

The new wing will house paediatric services on level two, two adult medicine wards on level one, and a purpose-built intensive-care unit on the ground floor.

Prof Kay said: “The new hospital wing has been designed with patients at its heart and the whole environment will be much more welcoming and visually attractive. We are committed to modernising our hospital estate and reinvesting money to improve our services for patients, their families and carers.

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“The new wing will transform our children’s services and future-proof this provision against the known population increase for this age group. It will also include a long-awaited, new, critical-care unit with state-of-the-art equipment.”

Planning permission for the scheme was given the go-ahead by Bradford council last year and followed the trust’s 2011 consultation, which involved public, staff, patients and trust governors, when it was announced that children’s services had been chosen as the speciality to make the new ward block its home.

The main entrance at the front of the BRI will undergo a major revamp with a new reception area which will house a patient advice and liaison service and bereavement centre, as well as retail outlets such as a shop, coffee bar and restaurant. The project will also include a revised rear entrance with improved access for visitors, staff and those with disabilities.

The new hospital wing, off Smith Lane, is the trust’s biggest project within an ambitious capital programme which will see £75 million spent on improving patient care in its hospitals over the next five years. The funding for the new wing has been aided by savings made by the trust, and a loan. It will be built on a vacant site next to ward block one. The blocks will be joined together. Extra parking for visitors will also be created under the scheme.

Prof Kay said the work is possible thanks to the hospital’s strong financial performance in a tough environment.

CONSTRUCTION work on a £28 million new wing at Bradford Royal Infirmary is due to start next month, it was announced today.

The go-ahead for the investment programme has been sanctioned by the hospital’s board of governors.

It is set to transform the hospital’s children’s services as well as providing a state-of-the art intensive care unit and should be ready by autumn 2016.

It has also been designed with patients at its heart, said Professor Clive Kay, chief executive of Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

The new wing will house paediatric services on level two, two adult medicine wards on level one and a purpose-built intensive care unit on the ground floor.

Prof Kay said: “The new hospital wing has been designed with patients at its very heart and the whole environment will be much more welcoming and visually attractive.

“We are absolutely committed to modernising our hospital estate and reinvesting money to improve our services for patients, their families and carers.”

He added: “The new wing will transform our children’s services and future-proof this provision against the known population increase for this age group. It will also include a long-awaited, new critical care unit with state-of-the-art equipment.”

An artist's impression of the modernised reception area at BRI

Planning permission for the scheme was given the go-ahead by Bradford Council last year and followed the Trust’s 2011 consultation which involved public, staff, patients and Trust governors, when it was announced that children’s services had been chosen as the speciality to make the new ward block its home.

The main entrance at the front of the BRI will also undergo a major revamp with a new reception area which will house a new Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) and Bereavement Centre, as well as retail outlets such as a shop, coffee bar and restaurant.

The massive project will also include a revised rear entrance with improved access for visitors, staff, and those with disabilities.

The new hospital wing, off Smith Lane, is the Foundation Trust’s single biggest project within an ambitious capital programme which will see £75m spent on improving patient care in its hospitals over the next five years.

The funding for the new wing has been aided by savings made by the Trust and also a loan.

It will be built on a vacant site next to ward block one, built in 2009, and the two blocks will be joined together, extra car parking spaces for visitors will also be created under the scheme.

Prof Kay said the work has been made possible thanks to the achievement of the hospital’s strong financial performance within a tough healthcare environment.

The Trust has appointed BAM Construction Limited as its construction partner for the new hospital wing development.

BRADFORD Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is the third largest Foundation Trust in the country.

It has an annual budget of £360 million, employs about 5,600 staff and has nearly 1,000 beds at Bradford Royal Infirmary and St Luke’s with about 1,000 to 2,000 more patients attend out-patient clinics each week.

The Bradford Royal Infirmary is also home to one of the busiest A&E departments in the country with more than 135,000 attendances each year, while its maternity unit is also one of the busiest delivering more than 6,000 babies each year.

The Foundation Trust also runs ambitious programmes such as the Yorkshire Cochlear Implant Service from the hi-tech Listening for Life Centre, and the Born In Bradford project which operates from the Bradford Institute for Health Research unit, based in the grounds of the BRI.