Councillors have been updated about the planned rebuild of Airedale Hospital.
The hospital in Steeton is set to be rebuilt because the majority of the hospital’s walls, floors and roofs were built with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), also known as crumbly concrete, which risks collapse.
A final decision on whether the rebuild will be made by the new Labour government which is reviewing the previous government’s New Hospital Programme.
However, officials working for Airedale NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the hospital, are continuing to work on plans and remain committed to a goal of opening the new hospital by 2030.
Ahead of a North Yorkshire Council meeting on Friday in Northallerton, councillors have received an update from Stuart Shaw, director of strategy, planning and partnership at the trust, regarding the planned rebuild.
Mr Shaw wrote in an email that the first stage of work to determine where on the site the new hospital will be built is almost complete.
He said the next phase will involve building a new multi-storey car park potentially as early as next year.
The trust is consulting with staff, local residents, patients and visitors to help inform the car park design with a report set to be published before the end of the year.
Mr Shaw also said some hospital services are likely to be moved to elsewhere on the site whilst building work for the new hospital takes place.
He added:
“This is because there is very limited space available on the current site that can be built on so we will have to take down some existing buildings to create sufficient space for the new hospital to be built.
“We are expecting the majority of these moves to be within the current site but will also need to consider external locations if we are not able to achieve this or if it might be of benefit to patients for a particular service to be provided from a different site.”
Last week, Skipton’s Conservative MP Sir Julian Smith said he believes the planned rebuild will go ahead despite mixed signals from the new government.
Mr Smith said:
“I’m quietly confident it will go ahead due to levels of RAAC and the implications on health and safety. It’s an extremely strong case, but we need to continue the pressure.
“It’s really important the hospital maintains confidence that it’s highly likely it will go ahead, but we need to nail that review and get it cleared.”
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