Hospital trust given £7.8m for building repairs

A hospital trust has been awarded almost £8m for vital building maintenance and repairs.

East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ENEFT), which runs Ipswich and Colchester hospitals, has been given £7.8m from the government.

The money is part of a £750m package previously announced to tackle issues such as leaky pipes and poor ventilation, helping to prevent delays or cancellations to operations.

Ricky Daniel, interim director of estates and facilities at ESNEFT, said the money would allow for a maintenance backlog to be tackled.

"Our buildings must be safe and fit for purpose for everyone who uses them - patients, visitors, and staff alike," Mr Daniel said.

"We're very pleased to have secured this Government funding.

"It will allow us to speed up vital backlog maintenance work across our hospital sites.

"This investment means we can carry out essential improvements more quickly, helping us to maintain high standards of care and safety."

Across the hospitals, the money will go to improvements on electrics, fire and safety systems, lifts, and security clinical upgrades like theatre improvements and ward refurbishments.

Mr Daniel said maintaining the hospital buildings was a "year-round priority" and the estates team regularly inspected and risk-assessed sites "to prevent any issues before they arise".

Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting, said the government was "on a mission to rebuild out NHS through investment and modernisation".

"Patients and staff deserve to be in buildings that are safe, comfortable and fit for purpose," he added.

"Through our Plan for Change, we will make our NHS fit for the future."

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