Helipad project at Luton and Dunstable Hospital put on hold

A helipad project for the Luton and Dunstable Hospital has been grounded for now, as a preferred location is considered unsuitable.

The plan was to have a helicopter linked to the hospital’s emergency and critical care services, with the help of public fundraising.

A charity dedicated to funding hospital helipads, the HELP Appeal donated £2.5m towards a £5m target. The hospital was on track to complete the helipad by the summer of 2020 before the pandemic intervened.

Conservative Heath and Reach councillor Mark Versallion asked about its progress during a Central Bedfordshire Council social care, health and housing overview and scrutiny committee meeting.

He wondered whether “the planned helipad is still on the radar and if funding towards it would be lost, as some of it was charitable and could expire”.

Chief executive of the Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust David Carter replied: “We’ve now paused the helipad project.

“This is because, as part of our works on the emergency department, we found some issues where the helipad development wasn’t possible where we thought it was going to be. So we’ve paused that programme.

“The funding is being redirected with the consent of the donors back to other projects.”

Mr Carter updated the committee on improvements to the hospital sites. “The acute services block is a replacement of some of the most in need infrastructure at the Luton and Dunstable,” he explained.

“That’s a significant scheme with a new five-story block, which will replace maternity, critical care and operating theatres. This work is due to finish late next year or early 2025.

“The second scheme is the emergency department and new entrance. The last phase will provide more triage rooms and a small area for mental health patients.

“There’s a CT scanner in the department for the first time and we’ve created a new front entrance to the hospital. It’s a welcoming environment for patients and importantly a much better waiting facility.

“The other initiative is the new energy centre, which is nearly finished. Our energy is provided by individual gas boilers. This is a state-of-the-art scheme to reduce our carbon footprint.

“That will improve our green agenda and the resilience of the site, which has been a problem in the past.

“At Bedford Hospital, we improved the emergency department with some Covid moneys we received,” he added. “We created an extension to the building, with a new waiting area and digital cubicles.

“There’s a CT scanner within Bedford, and work on the site’s electrical infrastructure. We’ve adapted and renovated a couple of floors of the Cauldwell Medical Centre as a fit for purpose outpatient facility.

“And there’s the Gilbert Hitchcock House development, which we’re working on together with the BLMK integrated care board (ICB).”

Director of redevelopment and strategic planning at the Bedfordshire Hospitals Trust Melanie Banks said: “We’re only touching around ten per cent of the estate.

“Both our hospitals are ageing and crumbling in parts. To rebuild both we would need around £2.5bn. That’s not possible in the current climate, so we prioritise against clinical need and estates risk.”