Stockport NHS Trust has revealed it will be bidding for Stockport modern hospital, one of the 40 new hospitals to be constructed from the £3.7 bn Government programme. The New Hospitals Programme plans to construct forty new hospitals by 2030. Thirty-two have already been revealed and the Government is now aiming for a further eight schemes.
The chief executive of Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, Karen James uttered that Stockport would bid to be one of these remaining eight. “Stepping Hill Hospital is an old hospital and has not been designed to offer a modern acute services and is also facing a maintenance bill of £95m.
“But even if we had the money we have to carry out all the needed job, it would not still offer the modern hospital environment staff and patients need.” While the last design will impact the cost of any new structure, it is evaluated that the Government would have to invest approximately £500m in the delivery of Stockport modern hospital for the residents and surrounding places.
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Alternative site.
With no space on the existing site to construct Stockport modern hospital, the Trust has been planning with Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council to get possible alternative site and are currently evaluating an area of the town centre with Debenhams former store and the Heaton Lane multi-storey car park.
James added that while several NHS organisations in the country will also be trying to be part of the New Hospitals Programme, it is a wish that Stockport’s plan will go on because of the town centre area which would tie into the Government’s levelling up agenda. The funding, designing and construction of a new hospital is not a fast process. It may take seven to eight years before opening of a new state-of-the-art structure, but a modern hospital is pretty much part of the medium to long term strategy for the local health and care future in Stockport and its surroundings.
