New Leighton Hospital could be built in 4 years, says Minister

A new Leighton Hospital could be built within four years, according to a Government health minister.

Lord Nick Markham made the comment when talking to Weaver Vale Labour MP Mike Amesbury.

The Minister visited the hospital this week to officially open two new wards.

At a roundtable briefing about the project, Mr Amesbury asked “How long it will take to build?”, to which he responded: “It would be three to four years”.

Leighton is one of seven hospitals to be rebuilt under the Government’s New Hospital Programme.

It was judged unsafe due to concrete structures exceeding the expected lifespan.

Expensive propping has been installed to keep patients safe.

Mr Amesbury said: “Investment is urgently needed for health and safety reasons and received cross-party political support.

“But the provision of brand new health facilities for the community, including many of my constituents, is also quite exciting.

“These hospital rebuilds are being delivered against the clock because the concrete planks involved must be removed by 2030.

“The minister said the intention was for Leighton to be rebuilt within three to four years, using a standardised hospital design and prefabricated sections.

“While there is understandable public cynicism about delivery of the Government’s New Hospital Programme, I have full confidence the local management team at the Mid Cheshire trust, including CEO Ian Moston, will move heaven and earth to get the rebuild completed as soon as possible.

“I also welcome Ian’s opening remarks at the event. He said the project was not simply about the replacement of a hospital building but ‘a once in a generation opportunity’ to reimagine the district health offer for the local population for the next 50 years.”

The new two-ward building opened at Leighton features a mixture of single and multi-bed bays and a specialist physiotherapy area on the ground floor for occupational therapy and post-surgery recovery, along with a patient day room.

The wards project was delivered by specialist offsite healthcare construction firm, Darwin Group.

Russ Favager, Deputy CEO and Chief Financial Officer of MCHFT, said: “We were delighted that Lord Markham was able to officially open the wards as part of his New Hospital Programme visit.

“The two new wards have allowed us to continue our focus on providing unparalleled care for our patients and the best quality and safe place to work for our people, I’d like to say a huge thank you to our estates team, Darwin Group and all those teams involved in this project for the speed in building these wards.”

Meanwhile, construction work is continuing to create a £14.1 million Cheshire elective hub at Victoria Infirmary Northwich (VIN).

The development will feature state-of-the-art clinical areas to support patient care, including two theatres, recovery area and consulting rooms.