New images of how Airedale Hospital could look once it is completely rebuilt have been released today.
There have been calls for a full rebuild of the hospital for years, as much of the facility was constructed using dangerous RAAC concrete.
After years’ of lobbying by local politicians, the rebuild was confirmed by Government earlier last year – with Airedale selected as one of the first wave of hospital rebuild that would begin between 2025 and 2030.
It is thought the built could cost as much as £1.5 billion.
Earlier this year Bradford Council named the hospital rebuild as one of seven “game changers” that will boost the Bradford District in the coming years.
The Steeton hospital is being re-built using the national New Hospital Programme blueprint, but tailored for the people of Airedale and sized to meet future health needs. It includes 100 per cent single en-suite patient rooms, which have space for carers to stay, and social spaces on each ward to prevent isolation.
There will be larger clinical areas to accommodate modern healthcare needs and more space and improved accessibility for both patients and visitors.
The Airedale NHS Care Trust says digital technology will be central to the design, helping to both deliver care for patients and manage the building.
The Trust says it has also listened to what local people have already said is important to them, including maximising green spaces and views and making the new hospital easy to access and navigate.
The new hospital is being driven by the need to urgently replace current facilities, 83 per cent of which are constructed of RAAC concrete. The old hospital is being kept safe through an extensive programme of structural repairs but needs completely replacing as soon as possible.
Images showing what the new hospital will look like have been released by the Trust today as part of its next stage of consultation, ahead of a planning application for the new building being submitted later this year.
Chief Executive ‘Foluke Ajayi said:
“This is a once-in-a lifetime opportunity to build a state-of-the-art hospital for Airedale. But it is about more than just replacing a building – we are designing a hospital for the future and transforming how we provide care and services for all our communities.
“The new hospital will be very different to what we have now and is based on the latest developments and best practice in healthcare. It will enable us to work in a different way and support collaborative working with our partners in Bradford District & Craven to provide more services in local communities and deliver integrated health and care.”
People are being encouraged to share their views on the outline design for the hospital with a programme of activities running until July 24. This includes drop-in events for local residents and a mobile exhibition that will be touring communities in the Trust’s catchment area across West and North Yorkshire and East Lancashire.
This pre-planning consultation is a vital step in the development of the new hospital. It is an opportunity for local people to review the plans, ask questions, and share their feedback before an application for outline planning permission is submitted to Bradford Metropolitan District Council later this year.
Foluke Ajayi added:
“A huge amount of consideration has gone into how we can best design a modern hospital to meet the needs of all our communities in this rural setting and we are really excited about the benefits it will bring for both our patients and our staff.
“It will be incredibly challenging to build the new hospital while keeping the existing one fully operational on the same site, but this will be a fantastic development for healthcare in Airedale.”
To find out more about the plans and consultation events visit https://www.airedale-trust.nhs.uk/about-us/securing-the-future-of-airedale/
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