The new Emergency and Urgent Care Campus at Stepping Hill Hospital is now open, and a short opening ceremony was held with contractors Tilbury Douglas at the building to mark the occasion.
Stockport NHS Foundation Trust Chair David Wakefield, and Chief Executive Karen James OBE joined representatives of Tilbury Douglas, together with capital, estates and clinical colleagues to mark the conclusion of a major building project to greatly improve emergency and urgent care in the area.
Construction of the new campus started in 2022 and has lasted nearly three years. Stockport NHS Foundation Trust’s capital and estates team have been working closely in partnership with Tilbury Douglas on the £34m scheme.
Extending from the hospital’s old Emergency Department (A&E) the new building has meant major changes to the front face of the hospital, becoming more welcoming and visually attractive, and making for an improved experience for patients receiving emergency and urgent care. The new Emergency Department entrance for patients opened just two weeks ago.
The design of the new campus is centred on patient needs, with the best possible state-of-the-art facilities being made available for staff. It includes new assessment, treatment and consultation areas for several key emergency and urgent care services including the children’s emergency department, mental health, and medical same day emergency care. The ambulance drop-off area has also been remodelled.
The clinical area of the campus has increased by increase by over 300m², enabling more patients to receive safe care and treatment sooner.
Karen James OBE, Chief Executive of Stockport NHS Foundation Trust said “It is fantastic to see the new campus open and running, providing the enhanced emergency and urgent care which are local population needs. The building project here has been a major project and a real team effort, and I’d like to say a big thank you to our partner contractors Tilbury Douglas, our capital and estates team, and everyone else who has worked so hard to make it possible.”
Martin Horne, Regional Director of the North West at Tilbury Douglas said “The new Emergency and Urgent Care Centre at Stepping Hill Hospital will make a real difference to patients, staff and the wider community. Delivering such a complex scheme in a live hospital environment required true collaboration. The trust team had to be dynamic in managing spatial challenges, while relying on us to perform dependably, minimising disruption and handing back spaces on time and to plan. Our experience in delivering complex healthcare schemes meant the trust could have complete confidence in our ability to deliver. This significant investment will provide a facility that is absolutely central to the health and well-being of the community, and we are proud to have delivered it in partnership with the trust.”