The government has confirmed the funding and timetable for a new, state-of-the-art hospital for Harlow, following a review of its New Hospital Programme (NHP).
The NHP will now be delivered in waves of investment, with The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust (PAHT) falling into wave two. Schemes in wave two are expected to begin construction between 2030 and 2035. PAHT has been advised it can plan to begin construction in Harlow from 2032.
In October 2019, the government first announced that PAHT would receive funding to build a new hospital in Harlow for its patients, community, and people. Since that time, PAHT, along with other trusts, has been working closely with the NHP team to develop a framework for the building of all the new hospitals in the national programme, including design, the procurement of contractors, and how to best use modern methods of construction so the new hospitals can be built faster, better, and more efficiently.
Yesterday’s announcement (20 January) is a significant delay to the original plans for a new Princess Alexandra Hospital, but it does provide certainty that there will be a new hospital during the next decade. PAHT will continue to work closely with the national programme team to ensure plans for the new hospital are robust and that the necessary land is acquired.
Hattie Llewelyn-Davies, chair of PAHT, and Thom Lafferty, chief executive at PAHT, said: “We are pleased that the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, the Rt Hon Wes Streeting, has confirmed the government’s commitment to a new hospital for Harlow. His statement provides much-needed certainty to our people and our patients.
“The new hospital will provide an incredible opportunity to transform the care we deliver to our local populations, responding to local need.
“In the meantime, our ageing hospital estate continues to face significant and ongoing problems. Now that the start of construction for our new hospital has been delayed until 2032, we will work with system and NHS England colleagues to ensure we can maintain safe and effective facilities for our patients and staff across our current sites in the meantime.
“We would like to thank our people, our patients, our partners, and our local communities for their continued support.”