In October the Health Secretary, Matt Hancock announced £184 million in funding to modernise hospitals, of which Barts Health is to receive £35.8 million in loan funding.
The loan will be used to support the redevelopment of Whipps Cross Hospital, carry out general maintenance across the trust and help to develop the Barts Life Sciences programme. In particular it will be used to:
- Carry out fire safety works across all hospitals (£6.1m)
- Essential maintenance across the Estate (8.1m)
- Move IT networks onto the cloud and other IT infrastructure developments (£7.6m)
- Replace ageing medical equipment (£2.2m)
- Refurbish two operating theatres at Whipps Cross (£1.2m)
- Replace CT scanners at Whipps Cross and other imaging (£2.9m)
- Complete the refurbishment of operating theatres at the Barts Health Orthopaedic Centre at Newham Hospital (£0.6m)
- Support the WX Strategic Outline Case for the Whipps Cross redevelopment (£1.5m)
- Other developments across the Sites (£5.6m)
Bill Boa, Chief Finance Officer at Barts Health, said“We are continually striving to improve all services and facilities for our patients, and this loan will go a long way in helping us to make that happen. The modernisation of our hospitals, alongside other developments across the trust, will enable us to provide a high-performing group of NHS hospitals, renowned for excellence and innovation, and delivering safe and compassionate care to our patients in east London and beyond.”
13 trusts will receive loan funding approved by the Health Secretary to go towards modernising equipment, refurbishing wards and ensuring the safety of NHS buildings. The funding will be shared with 13 trusts in England, including:
- King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust: £26 million to upgrade IT, replace medical equipment and fund critical upgrades to help the trust continue providing the best possible services for patients
- University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust: £11 million to replace 2 existing theatres in the main block at Queen’s Hospital Burton
- Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust: £21 million to replace equipment, including defibrillators and CT scanners and imaging, as well as funding its radiology, endoscopy and nephrology departments
Loans are issued at National Loan Fund (NLF) rates, which means the cost is equivalent to the government’s cost of borrowing.
Matt Hancock, Health Secretary said “These loans will make sure hospitals continue to deliver vital services to patients in buildings that are safe and have the right equipment to deliver world-class care. Since July, we have injected £4.8 billion capital funding into the NHS – helping refurbish hospital wards, replace old medical equipment and maintain NHS buildings.”
