Chapel Allerton Hospital hub gets the go-ahead
A £32m elective care building will be delivered by Kier Construction on behalf of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
The rest of the project team includes architect P+HS, project manager Arcadis, Turner & Townsend as cost manager, Curtins on structural design, M&E designer DSSR, and planning consultant DPP.
The funding will come from NHS England and the West Yorkshire Integrated Care System, with construction set to start imminently, with a planned opening date of November 2027.
Signed off by NHS England, the project will comprise a 23-bed ward, two operating theatres, and an admissions area as an extension to the existing theatres suite.
It will increase the Trust’s elective operating capacity by more than 1,600 cases per year and will focus on planned spinal and orthopaedic operations.
The aim is to reduce waiting list times, as having a dedicated hub away from larger hospital sites such as Leeds General Infirmary and St James’ allows for more reliable capacity all year round.
The works will require the removal of trees, with the Trust planning to plant around 20 new ones on the Chapel Allerton site and more than 200 at the local Yorkshire environment bank, to comply with BNG requirements.
Craige Richardson, director of estates & facilities at Leeds Hospitals and senior responsible officer for this project, said: “This is fantastic news for patients in Leeds and from across the region as well as our colleagues working at the hospital.
“The purpose-built elective care hub increases protected space and theatres to see planned inpatients, enhancing their experience and meaning we can see more people more quickly.
“Thank you to the teams who have worked hard to get us to this point. This project exemplifies our commitment to modernising our healthcare infrastructure to meet future demands, bringing clear benefits for the people we provide care for.”
Health minister Karin Smyth said: “This £32m investment will help thousands more people get the treatment they need sooner.
“Dedicated elective hubs like this are crucial to cutting waiting times, by allowing surgery to go ahead all year round without disruption from emergency pressures.
“This project is a clear example of how we are modernising the NHS, investing in the frontline and backing local systems to deliver real improvements for patients.”
