Our Building Programme

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The Strategic Estates team leads the Building Brilliance Programme. This programme of work covers all the major construction projects, and associated hospital reconfiguration, to be delivered across the Trust over the next ten years. We are also responsible for the replacement of high value equipment and associated works.

These projects will support the transformation of healthcare in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly by:

• Improving the patient experience with new, high-quality environments for the delivery of care.
• Improving clinical outcomes with modern, fit-for-purpose theatres, wards, diagnostic facilities, day case units and support accommodation.
• Developing a modern, sustainable estate to deliver Cornwall’s Carbon Net Zero commitment
• Addressing health inequalities by improving access to care and providing safe, welcoming and comforting buildings for patients, visitors and staff.
• Attracting and retaining talented and dedicated staff with the provision of state of the artwork spaces
• Delivering a modern digital infrastructure to sustain a wide range of clinical and non-clinical technologies to boost efficiency and innovation in the Cornish health system
• Aligning with local partners across all sectors to support local economic, sustainability and regeneration initiatives.

This programme is funded through the Government’s New Hospitals Programme and the STP Wave 4 Funding stream.

If you’d like to get involved in any of our projects, please get in touch. Patient engagement and hearing from people with “lived experiences” is very important to us. Email: rcht.buildingbrilliance@nhs.net

Accessibility to sites during construction

The Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust has a broad and ambitious programme to improve healthcare across the county in the next 10 years.

During the construction phases at our various sites (Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro, West Cornwall Hospital in Penzance and St Michael’s Hospital in Hayle), patients, staff and visitors will experience some disruption as they access the sites.

This may be particularly difficult when seeking to park a vehicle or when arriving at drop-off and pick-up zones, and we apologise in advance for the inconvenience and stress this may cause for all users of our sites. We are currently updating our Site Maps to show the new buildings both planned and currently under construction and the best arrangements for parking and vehicle drop-off associated with those areas of the sites.

We know our sites are already limited in terms of space, but we monitor the situation in terms of accessible parking, and pedestrian and vehicle access and, where possible, we will publish advance warning of changes due to the construction works.

Some access and parking constraints may be for a matter of hours or days (for example, to lay cables); other changes are much longer term as they are due to a whole construction project taking over new space on the hospital site.

In addition, we need to provide site accommodation for the construction workers and maintain our diagnostic scanner parking spaces on level ground close to hospital buildings. Where we are forced to remove amenities, we will do our best to replace them, or reinstate them, as soon as we possibly can.

Our project management and construction teams work closely with a range of accessibility and architectural design consultants, community groups and individual patients and visitors to hear first-hand the lived experience of our stakeholders and to ensure that disruption is minimised every step of the way.

We are committed to re-providing accessible parking bays wherever possible, within the physical and planning constraints of the site itself; and we are continuing to review options to provide suitable temporary solutions for patients, carers, staff and visitors whilst the construction projects are in progress.

Royal Cornwall Hospital

The long term plan for the Royal Cornwall Hospital at Treliske is to reconfigure the site and to locate the Main Entrance in the new Women and Children’s Hospital. The plan is to use space freed up by the future demolition of the Princess Alexandra Wing for a multi-storey patient and visitor car park incorporating accessible parking spaces and a green travel hub.

Tower Block, Princess Alexandra Wing and Eye Unit

There is no direct access to the Tower Block via the Main Tower Entrance. Alternative routes are via the Link Corridor Entrance, and via the Eye Unit Entrance behind the Tower Block and to the east of the Emergency Department. (The Eye Unit entrance is well signposted as you approach the construction site in a vehicle.)

Parking spaces, and the drop-off zones in this part of the site, are restricted to some limited accessible parking spaces outside the front of the Princess Alexandra Wing, and along the short approach to the Eye Unit Entrance.

There are six accessible parking bays outside the front of the Princess Alexandra Wing. There are also a further six accessible parking bays in the small car park next to the Emergency Department, although at certain times these may be restricted temporarily.

Dolphin House and Trelawny Wing

Whilst the new MRI and Oncology Unit is being constructed, parking bays and the drop-off zone outside the Trelawny entrance have been reduced. The nearest accessible parking bays can be found in the main Trelawny car park opposite the Trelawny Main Entrance.

There is no access to the car park next to Dolphin House for the duration of the construction works. The nearest accessible parking spaces are in the Mermaid Centre car park and in the additional “overflow” car park across the road from the Microbiology Building. A wheelchair friendly entrance to Dolphin House can be reached via a well-lit fixed gravel path from the road, opposite the Duchy Hospital entrance.

Link Corridor

There is a temporary MRI Scanner located on the north side of the Link Corridor entrance. Alternative accessible parking for the Link Corridor entrance is located either on the south side of the Link Corridor in the area adjacent to the Emergency Department, or a few metres away from the north entrance to the Link Corridor, outside the Sunrise Centre.

West Cornwall Hospital

West Cornwall Hospital currently has no building works obstructing the accessibility of its facilities.

St Michael’s Hospital

St Michael’s Hospital currently has no building works obstructing the accessibility of its facilities.

Regular Updates

You will find more information about temporary access limitations, and reprovisions, for each of the projects below.

Additionally, please follow us on social media where we regularly update information about short-term changes to access for all the new buildings and construction works @BuildingRcht (Twitter) and @RCHTBuildingBrilliance (Facebook).

If you wish to contact us regarding accessibility issues during the construction phases on any site at the Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, please email rcht.buildingbrilliance@nhs.net.

Project: Critical Care Healing Garden

A healing and sensory garden for critically ill patients to experience nature and the outdoors as part of their recovery.

A new Healing Garden for the Critical Care Unit is being developed, funded entirely by charitable donation, following a magnificent fundraising campaign led by the renowned explorer Robin Hanbury-Tenison and his wife Louella. Robin, who lives in Cornwall, believes that the Healing Garden at University Hospitals Plymouth saved his life after he contracted Covid-19 right at the start of the pandemic in March 2020.

He feels so strongly about the life saving power of nature and the benefits provided by hospital healing gardens, that he’d like to see a dedicated therapeutic garden in every hospital in the UK – starting with RCHT, here in Cornwall. You can watch Robin’s incredibly moving story of recovery here.

The positive clinical impact of hospital healing gardens is well known and, along with the Hanbury-Tenison’s fundraising campaign, Critical Care Staff Nurse Kym Vigus has long campaigned to create a Healing Garden for critically ill patients at the Royal Cornwall Hospital.

Working with the ideas of Critical Care staff and patients, the landscape design company Lavigne Lonsdale aim to create a beautiful but practical healing garden in a courtyard between Trelawny Wing and the Emergency Department. This therapeutic space will be immediately below the Critical Care Unit to allow the best possible access for critically ill patients and their families and carers.

There will be space for up to two hospital beds, at any one time, supported by Critical Care Unit therapists, nurses, medical staff and families and carers. Medical gasses will be provided directly to the garden to enable patients to stay in the garden for longer that would be possible with a bottled medical gas supply.

There will be restful seating areas, therapy and rehabilitation areas, and the garden will reflect the essence of Cornwall, night and day, through the seasons. The garden will also be available for Critical Care staff to use as a rest area – for quiet times, break times and decompression.

As well as providing a space for quiet reflection, the garden will also be filled with nature: plants that will fill the senses; trees, ferns, flowers and grasses of all textures and heights; the pleasant smells and sounds of the natural world brought to the patient’s bedside. A bird sculpture by famous Cornish artist, Kurt Jackson will form the centrepiece. We hope that this healing garden will allow our critically ill patients to feel alive once more, or perhaps for one last time.

Disruption

Access to the courtyard garden is via the Trelawny Wing and Link Corridor. We anticipate groundworks and installations will cause some noise disturbance, especially if heavy machinery for the landscaping is required and during the installation of piped gasses.

We have chosen to do the work during the winter months, so that windows can be closed to dampen the noise and to prevent any risk of air pollution to internal areas as a result of ground disturbance.

The need for sound blankets will be reviewed as the works progress. Other disruption – including the movement of machinery, plants and soil, and building materials – will be minimised, and will be planned for when traffic is low in the adjacent corridor.

We will ensure staff, patients and visitors are informed of any planned disruption ahead of time. The work is anticipated to take no longer than 6 weeks.

Ecology

The Critical Care Healing Garden will be planted with a range of species that will thrive in a courtyard setting. Planting is being carefully curated to be evergreen, as well as seasonal, and to provide some privacy and canopy protection for patients from the elements.

The aim is to provide sensory opportunities without overloading the senses for recovering patients.

The environmental impact assessment, to support planning permission for the Tremenel Unit requires the Trust to redress the balance of ecological diversity disrupted by the new building.

This may be achieved in part through a new living wall as part of the design for the Critical Care Healing Garden. Design options are under review.

Project: Emergency Department Expansion

An extension and refurbishment of the Resuscitation Unit and Rapid Assessment and Treatment Unit (RATs).

A new, spacious and modern Resuscitation Unit opened to patients in November 2020 providing the Emergency Department (ED) team with high-quality, hi-tech facilities in which to care for patients with the most acute and life-threatening conditions.

With four bays and two isolation cubicles, the brand new single-storey unit is a significant improvement on the smaller original unit built in the early 1990s. The extra physical accommodation provides space for clinical staff to work quickly and effectively in busy times, particularly during winters, summer holiday surges and, in recent times, local surges in coronavirus cases.

In early May 2021, the next phase of the Emergency Department expansion work was completed on time and on budget, and the Rapid Assessment and Treatment area (RATs) was officially opened.

The RATs area is where patients first arrive when brought in by ambulance. They are met by experienced nursing staff who conduct rapid investigations prior to the patient being reviewed by the doctor.

The RATs area has 4 treatment bays, and is a purpose-built, dedicated facility where staff can operate swiftly safely to deliver a much better patient experience.

Disruption

Disruption during the construction work for this project was confined to the closure of the small car park adjacent to the ED to provide a site compound for the construction workers and space to extend the building. Six accessible parking bays in the small car park have been reinstated since the completion of the project.

The Link Corridor (South) Ambulance pick-up and drop-off area was unaffected during the construction period, and diversions for pedestrians and patient emergency drop-off by car, were well signposted. Some parking bays adjacent to the ED remain closed to the public at present whilst work continues to construct the Tremenel Unit. This is where the site compound is located to support the construction workers during the building phase.

Ecology

The removal of a small tree and some bushes from the construction site was completed under the supervision of an ecological expert, who also provided advice on the protection of birds, animals, and plant life.

A site-wide grounds, gardens and tree management scheme is under development as part of RCHT’s ecology and bio-diversity programme. This programme will include removing old and dangerous trees; some gardens being re-located; some trees being replanted, and one or two new gardens being created on our sites.

Where it is not possible to replant or re-locate trees, donations will be made to the NHS Forest initiative which supports the planting of new trees. Various green areas around the hospital sites are being considered for re-wilding and for the creation of small staff and visitor rest areas.

Project: MRI and Oncology Unit

MRI Scanning Suite and acute Haematology and Oncology services

A new MRI Suite and Haematology and Oncology Unit, which will include Lowen Ward, is currently under construction at the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro. Located adjacent to the Trelawny Wing Main Entrance, this brand new 3-storey building will house an MRI scanning suite (with space for 3 scanners) and acute Haematology and Oncology services.
The new building will be accessed via the Trelawny Wing Main Entrance and will provide:

• 2 MRI scanners with future scope for a third
• A 24-bed Haematology and Oncology ward
• An Ambulatory Emergency Care Day Unit to support acute oncology patients
• A Palliative care suite with a safe and private sensory courtyard garden
• An Iodine Therapy Suite
• Waiting areas and general support facilities

The new building allows the relocation of existing MRI services to a purpose-built unit on the lower ground floor. Co-locating the MRI scanners next to other Imaging services improves continuity of care and supports a more efficient Imaging workforce.

The new MRI suite will be modern, but welcoming, and will initially house two MRI scanners, upgraded to the latest technology. There will also be space to support a third MRI scanner in the future.

Providing an improved space on the first floor for the care of patients with Cancer, the new Haematology / Oncology Unit will be contemporary clinical environment delivering the highest standards of care and infection prevention and control.

A modern and clean building is vital for this group of patients, who are more vulnerable to infection as a result of the treatments they receive. Patients will also benefit from an increase in designated cancer beds (24 beds rather than the current 18 beds on Lowen Ward). All Oncology beds will be located together on one ward on the same floor as the dedicated outpatient and day-case service for acute Oncology patients. The plant room is located across the entire second floor.

Disruption

Throughout the enabling works for this scheme, various pedestrian and vehicle diversions have been put in place to keep everyone safe. There is no access for anyone other than the contractors in the area bounded by the green site hoardings. Please follow the signposting and safety notices to access Trelawny Wing.

The path and roadway between the Microbiology building and Dolphin House is closed off. From the overflow patient car park, the staff car parks and the helipad area, you will need to access the main hospital buildings either via the path to the front of the Microbiology building, or via entrances further along the road and past the Mermaid Centre (opposite The Duchy Hospital entrance).

Trelawny Main Entrance

Changes to the parking areas both sides of the Trelawny Wing Main Entrance, and at Dolphin House, will be in place throughout the works. Essential user spaces which were previously located to the north of the Trelawny Main Entrance have been re-provided outside Pendragon House (across the main site road).

Ambulance access is provided in two bays outside the front of the Microbiology building. There are no drop-off spaces available for disabled patients in front of the Trelawny Wing Main Entrance for safety reasons.

This group of patients will need to park in the designated accessible car parking spaces in the patient car park on the opposite side of the access road. Access to the bus stop to the south of the Trelawny Main Entrance remains unchanged.

Dolphin House bike shelter and car park

The Dolphin House bike shelter has not been removed during the building works, and there is a new wheelchair accessible path to the rear of Dolphin House to allow external access to Dolphin House throughout the works.

This path is intended for pedestrians; so, cyclists using the Dolphin House bike shelter must dismount before entering the Dolphin House rear garden area and wheel their bikes to the shelter.

Accessible parking

There is no access to the Dolphin House car park for the duration of the building works. Patients using the Child Development Centre will be allocated two spaces, for drop-off only, in the Mermaid Centre car park, and will access the Child Development Centre via the path to the rear of Dolphin House.

The Women and Children’s Care Group team can provide additional help, on request, to support patients and families in moving from their parked vehicles to the main entrance of Dolphin House. Please contact the Child Development Centre for further information.

Ecology

Several trees, plants and shrubs were removed at the start of the MRI / Oncology Unit project, under the supervision of an ecologist. The ecologist also advised the contractors on the protection of nesting birds, animals and insects.

A grounds, gardens and tree management scheme is under development as part of the Trust’s overall ecology and bio-diversity programme. This scheme will include removing old, damaged, and dangerous trees; the relocation of some gardens; the re-planting of some trees; and some new gardens being created.

Where it is not possible to replant or re-locate trees, donations will be made to the NHS Forest initiative which supports the planting of new trees.

Project: New Children’s Garden

A new garden for young hospital patients and their families to enjoy.

The new Play for Life Garden, now known as the Garden of Freedom, has replaced the original children’s garden and play area on the Treliske Hospital site. This garden was removed in 2020 to make way for the construction of the Tremenel Unit.

The new garden is located behind Wheal Prosper Ward and adjacent to the new Impact building (behind the Princess Alexandra Wing). This is a quiet, safe area, away from traffic and yet only a short walk from the maternity and paediatric wards. Innovative and playful signage has been put in place to help patients and their families and carers locate this new space.

The new garden, designed by local company Earth Wright Ltd, has been specially created for children and their parents, families, and carers to enjoy during treatment, or whilst visiting, the Royal Cornwall Hospital.

The design has had input from the Trust’s specialist play team, families, and patients, and considers the accessibility and sensory needs of young people. It also provides a wonderful space for exploration and play. Displaying more than 200 plants, shrubs, herbs and trees, the area has begun to fill with natural insect wildlife. A play hut sits at the heart of the garden and allows children of all abilities to become immersed in their imagination as they play.

The children’s garden is also a triumph of local community spirit. Adding to the garden are two community-based projects providing exciting items for the children to find.

Kier Construction worked in partnership with Cornwall College in Camborne, whose students, supported by their tutors, have created a wonderful colour-pencil-themed bench and some stunning objects of interest including bug hotels, metal insects and decorative copper hanging items across the garden area. Kier also worked to clear and prepare parts of the garden for painting.

Cornish fashion company Seasalt have designed and created an enchanted woodland-themed mural on the wall facing into the garden, which brings to life creatures such as stags, foxes, rabbits and owls, alongside secret fairy houses that are situated along a winding path for children to discover.

Other donations were made by SJ Andrews of Redruth who provided materials given to the Cornwall College students; SeeTech, who painted the garden’s large fence panels and beams; Kier (again) for providing panel painting materials, and Gloweth Ltd of Truro for donating all the paint for Seasalt to create the mural.

A fundraising campaign is now underway to add some accessible, specialist play equipment to the space, including a basket swing which can be enjoyed by children.

Anyone wishing to donate to the children’s garden fundraising appeal for play equipment can do so via: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/RCHTChildrensGarden or by scanning the QR code below:

Hospital staff, and residents in the nearby staff accommodation, will also be able to enjoy the garden when it is not in use by patients and their families and carers.

Ecology

The ecological impact assessment undertaken to support the planning application for the Tremenel Unit requires a net gain in ecological diversity.

The new (Play for Life) will be planted with a variety of evergreens, flowering plants, and shrubs. The garden will also have a number of trees planted, in close proximity to each other, to create a copse effect. Shrub hedging will provide screening for some privacy and will encourage children to play and explore.

A range of perennial plants which are known to thrive in the Cornish climate will provide colour, scent, and texture.

Project: Tremenel Unit

A relocation ward block to provide flexible space for the temporary relocation of wards and services.

The Tremenel Unit (previously known as the Progressive Recovery Unit when under construction) opened in two phases. Initially, the first floor was opened as Wheal Vor Ward in December 2021, and then in November 2022, the ground floor of the Tremenel Unit was fully opened.

The Unit is dedicated to providing additional temporary relocation space for wards and services displaced during the long-term reconfiguration of the Treliske Hospital site. A number of services will need to move to make way for the new Women and Children’s Hospital, one of the Government’s ‘40 New Hospitals’ being built under the national New Hospital Programme.

Currently, the upper floor is home to the Frailty Same Day Emergency Care Ward, whilst the ground floor is a temporary home to Lowen Ward (until the end of March 2023 when it will move into the new MRI and Oncology building next to Trelawny Wing).  Tremenel Unit now also provides a permanent home for Patient Blood Management Services, which can be found in one section of the ground floor.

Located between the Princess Alexandra Wing and the Tower Block, access to the Tremenel Unit is via the Eye Unit Entrance, and then through a new link corridor connected to the Eye Unit Reception area, or via Trelawny Wing and an internal walk along the Link Corridor.

The Link Corridor, where Lowen Ward was previously located, will be demolished eventually to make way for the Women and Children’s Hospital.

Disruption

The Tower Block Main Entrance remains closed to patients and visitors who are asked to enter the building via the Eye Unit Entrance at the rear of the Tower Block.  (This area needs to retain emergency access.)

Some accessible parking bays are available next to the Emergency Department and Link Corridor (south side) entrance, and there are drop-off areas next to the entrance of the Eye Unit and around the Tower Block.

There is no access to the Tower Block, or Renal Unit, via the Princess Alexandra Wing (maternity) entrance. However, for patients and visitors who can walk some distance, the Unit can be accessed by walking along the internal corridors from either the Trelawny Wing Main Entrance or the Link Corridor (south side) entrance.

We apologise in advance for the inconvenience the ongoing construction work. Our long term building programme is essential to delivering better healthcare facilities for the future.

Ecology

To secure sufficient space for the Tremenel Unit, the Play for Life Children’s Garden, adjacent to the Tower Block, had to be removed. The removal of the garden was completed under the supervision of an ecologist, who also provided advice on the protection of birds, animal, and plant life.

Some trees in front of the Tremenel Unit have been retained, however, and a site for the relocation of the Children’s Garden was identified. The new Children’s Garden of Freedom opened officially in June 2022.

The electrical sub-station, next to the Postgraduate Centre, has also been upgraded and expanded, as part of the overall site reconfiguration programme, to provide power to the Tremenel Unit. As a result of this expansion some of the Jeffrey Kelson Memorial Garden was lost.

The garden furniture, table tennis tables, and young cherry trees in the Jeffrey Kelson Memorial Garden have been moved to a new location to the west of the Knowledge Spa. A special magnolia tree, which is a memorial to a much-loved member of staff, has been protected and will remain where it was originally planned.

A grounds, gardens and tree management scheme are under development as part of the Trust’s overall ecology and bio-diversity programme. This scheme will include removing old, damaged, and dangerous trees; the relocation of some gardens; the re-planting of some trees; and some new gardens being created.

Where it is not possible to replant or re-locate trees, donations will be made to the NHS Forest initiative which supports the planting of new trees.

Project: West Cornwall Outpatients

This project is paused whilst the Trust awaits news from the Treasury around funding.

A new Outpatient Department and refurbished Urgent Treatment Centre in Penzance.

West Cornwall Hospital in Penzance is to benefit from a modern outpatient department, with fit-for-purpose accessible space and improved facilities. The new building will support staff to continue to deliver high quality outpatient care for the people of West Cornwall and will be accessed via the existing Main Entrance. The project will include an expanded and refurbished Urgent Treatment Centre in the existing main block.

The new outpatient department will provide consultation and examination rooms; treatment spaces and rehabilitation facilities. Office space and rest areas will be improved for staff.

Digital technology has enabled the provision of virtual outpatient clinics and facilities will be provided on site for those patients without access to digital technology at home. This will allow patients with an appointment at West Cornwall Hospital to also meet virtually, if required, with clinical staff based elsewhere and this will reduce the need to travel outside the locality for care.

Access to the Outpatient Department will be improved to modern standards, with wider and level wheelchair access through doors and into lifts. New signage will be dementia and impairment-friendly, and digital wayfinding and mapping tools are also being considered.

There are plans to redevelop some of the existing Outpatient Department for office accommodation and, if further funds become available, the Trust will also investigate opportunities to provide key worker accommodation and accommodation for families visiting from a long distance away.

Included in the overall scheme is the sale of the Bellair Community Clinic, which is a short walk from West Cornwall Hospital, and the relocation of the services provided at Bellair to the new West Cornwall Outpatient Department and support accommodation. This move will bring together acute, community and primary healthcare staff to deliver services from one location. This new integrated service delivery will enhance the patient experience; support a more connected way of working and ultimately improve clinical outcomes.

Disruption

There will some level of disruption throughout the building process, however measures will be taken to reduce the impact of the project on the day-to-day operation of the hospital.

The construction site will be secured, and made safe, by the Contractor throughout the construction phase; and steps will be taken to reduce noise and dust levels.

Blue badge accessible parking will be maintained and prioritised, as part of the construction phase health and safety plan. General parking may become challenging at times; however the hospital is located a short distance away from a large public car park.

We apologise in advance for the inconvenience the construction work will cause; however, we hope you agree that this exciting building project is essential to delivering better healthcare facilities for West Cornwall.

Ecology

There is limited green space around the West Cornwall site at present; however, the Trust is reviewing all options to create more green space and add biodiversity to the site. For example, the development of courtyard gardens is under consideration.

Any trees for removal, because of the building works, will be replaced either on site or replanted via the NHS Forest scheme. The flat roof of the new building will allow for photovoltaic solar panels to be installed, and other energy or resource saving measures will be reviewed.

The building uses modern sustainable construction materials, and new methods of construction to reduce on-site waste and to create a highly insulated building. The design also uses natural ventilation wherever possible, with mechanical ventilation limited to areas where clinically necessary.

The sustainability plan has determined some of the sizes of windows in order to balance natural daylight, natural ventilation, and solar overheating in summer. The building is also offset from the current inpatient space to retain natural light for the existing wards.

Project: Women and Children’s Hospital

A dedicated Women and Children’s Hospital at the heart of the Royal Cornwall Hospital.

Watch the 3D fly-through film of what the new Women and Children’s Hospital could look like when complete in 2028

A new Women and Children’s Hospital is to be built at the heart of the Royal Cornwall Hospital site in Truro to replace the existing Princess Alexandra Wing. The new hospital, which will also provide the site’s new Main Entrance, will bring together all women and children’s services into one building. Services will include Maternity, Neonatal and Paediatric care; Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Key features of the new building will be a consultant-led birthing suite; a midwife-led birthing suite; a neonatal intensive care unit with transitional care facilities; and a day assessment unit for maternity patients.

The new Women and Children’s Hospital will have dedicated operating theatres to support the birthing suites, as well as dedicated operating theatres for gynaecological surgery. There will be a Paediatric Assessment Unit for children who require urgent ambulatory care, and the Fertility Service will remain on site, with a range of therapies offered including support during early pregnancy.

A retail pharmacy, café, and other support facilities such as a breastfeeding and nursing room and dedicated toilets with a baby change area and a Changing Places facility, will be located in the new Main Entrance. A new Children’s Play Garden (replacing the Play 4 Life Garden) has been already been created a short walk across the Royal Cornwall Hospital site to provide children and families an opportunity to relax away from the busy hospital environment.

The new Women and Children’s hospital will provide a modern, safe, and welcoming environment for patients, staff, and the wider community in Cornwall. Benefits will include:

• A state-of-the-art facility built to deliver sustainability and built using modern construction methods to support Cornwall’s net zero carbon ambitions. The local health system’s Green Plan for Cornwall (2020 – 2030) states the sustainability goals for the county and how they may be achieved.
• A purpose-built Women and Children’s hospital for safer, more efficient care, for these patient groups.
• New ways of working for hospital staff; and improved ways of caring for babies, parents, and the young people of Cornwall.
• Digital innovations and enhancements to enable the use of sensory areas; interactive care pathways; and the ability to connect families and carers remotely in the delivery of care and the support of the patient.

Disruption

The new Women and Children’s Hospital is being built in the space between the Trelawny Wing and the Tower Block. The Link Corridor and a number of clinical and non-clinical services are currently located within the footprint of the proposed new building.

To make way for the new building, several key enabling projects are underway, which include the relocation of some services to other locations on the hospital site. 

These are:

• Cardiac Department Relocation (and associated move for Trauma Assessment Unit) (2023-2024)
• Pathology Department and Mortuary, including Mortuary (2024-2025)
• Haematology Clinic and Laboratories (2024-2025)
• Retail Pharmacy and some Pharmacy support accommodation
• Hospital Supplies Delivery and Receipting Unit
• Demolition of the Penventinnie Lane Houses (Feb – May 2023)
• Extension of the Gravel Pit Car Park (June – November 2023)
• Electrical Infrastructure Improvement

There will be regular communication and updates about the new developments, and any disruption to services or access to the hospital, as these changes are planned in detail and then delivered.

We apologise in advance for the inconvenience the construction work will cause; however we hope you agree that this exciting building programme is essential to delivering better healthcare facilities for the future.

Ecology

As the new Women and Children’s Hospital will be built on a site occupied by existing buildings, there will be minimal loss of green space as a result of the construction. A new Children’s Garden has already been created to replace the original children’s Play 4 Life garden and play area on the Treliske Hospital site.

During the final design phases for the new hospital we will be seeking ideas on a range of opportunities for sustainability and biodiversity. Patients, staff, and the wider community are invited to offer ideas and feedback via our dedicated email rcht.buildingbrilliance@nhs.net.