Planning application for new Hillingdon Hospital submitted to Council

A planning application for a new Hillingdon Hospital has been submitted to Hilllingdon Council by the Hillingdon NHS Trust.

The proposed new hospital will include a larger Accident and Emergency department, will provide state-of-the-art health care for local residents and will include a large expansion in floor space resulting in an increase of both single rooms and beds.

It will also incorporate a mobility hub providing access to a wide range of transport options, extensive outdoor spaces and attractive public landscaping and will be designed to seamlessly fit into the local environment and enhance the local area.

The hospital will be located centrally on the site to reduce impact on neighbours. In-patient floors will be higher up to maximise natural light and to provide views. Areas of high footfall such as the urgent and emergency care department and out-patients will be on lower floors to enable easy access.

The trust says that the current building, which opened in 1967 and has a maze-like layout, makes it difficult for patients to get around and the condition of the buildings can make the experience of being in hospital more difficult.

In a 2018 inspection carried out by the Care Quality Commission, the hospital was rated as inadequate which the trust say is contributed by various factors including maintenance, infection control and capacity issues, which are a direct result of the physical constraints of the existing site. On their website, the trust say that the layout and state of disrepair also makes it difficult for staff to do their jobs as efficiently and effectively as they would like. The trust overall is currently rated as “requires improvement”.

The building work will take place in phases so the hospital and its usual services will remain open.

Hillingdon Council are inviting residents to have their say on the project. This can be done by viewing the full planning application online and completing the online form by Thursday 21^st July.

A hard copy of the application is also available to view at Uxbridge Library during its normal opening hours and at the Civic Centre, Uxbridge, Monday to Friday, between 9am and 5pm.

A case officer will be available at the Civic Centre on Wednesday 29^th June (10am to 11am and 1pm to 2.30pm) and Wednesday 6^th July (10am to 11am and 5pm to 6.30pm) to assist individual residents with the consultation process.