Publish date: 25 August 2020
Plan for a health and education hub in Northumberland unveiled
Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has today unveiled plans for a proposed £25 million investment in a health and education hub on its hospital site in Cramlington.
The trust is working in partnership with developer, Assura plc, and planning and development consultants, Lichfields on the plans for the hub which is great news for patients, staff and the wider economy.
The proposed 6,750 square metre development will accommodate a clinical skills and nursing training centre of excellence, conference facilities, office space, meeting rooms and flexible space for potential clinical use. A small coffee shop is also included in the plans within a separate building.
It will be located on the land, currently boarded off, as you drive onto the Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital site. This land was used as the construction compound while the emergency hospital was built in 2015.
Sir James Mackey, Chief Executive of Northumbria Healthcare trust, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for us to support the continuous transformation of health services in our region. We are all well versed on the challenges we are experiencing as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak, from people’s health through to jobs and the economy. To be able to secure investment for a health and education hub during this time will be unprecedented. I am therefore hopeful, following the relevant public engagement and planning process, we will be able to progress with this important innovation.
“This proposed hub supports the national planning policy as it will make more effective use of space on an existing site and be a valuable addition for our staff, patients, local communities and the region as a whole. We are very excited about the partnership and other opportunities that this development could bring for our trust and the health system as a whole.”
Planning permission will be submitted by the end of September and the decision should be made by the end of the year. If permission is granted, it is hoped that construction will begin in Summer 2021 and be completed by the end of 2022.
People are being asked to give feedback on these proposals before planning permission is submitted. This can be done via www.assuracramlington.comuntil Sunday 13 September 2020.
Assura’s senior development manager Andy Cooper said: “We’re delighted to be working with the trust on this exciting project. The health and education hub will create a truly innovative and modern facility which will not only support current staff but also students who are starting out on their future careers.”
Robert Dibden, from Lichfields, said: “The whole project team is keen to get as much feedback as possible on these exciting new development proposals at this stage. We will carefully consider all of the comments submitted via the consultation website. Once the planning application has been submitted, local residents will then be able to view the full range of application documents on the Northumberland County Council website.”
The hospital trust, along with the developer, has committed to ensuring everyone is informed and kept up-to-date with progress.