Rachel Maclean, MP for Redditch County, has urged local health bosses to submit their full business case to the Department of Health and Social Care as soon as possible in order to access the remaining £29.6million capital funding.
The significant cash boost for the Alexandra Hospital and Worcestershire Royal Hospital was announced last summer, and Rachel has already expressed her frustration at the time it is taking for the hospitals to receive the funding.
Ever since she was first elected as Redditch’s MP, Rachel has been lobbying the Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, and putting pressure on local health bosses over the £29.6million capital funding.
Rachel’s hard work was a significant factor in the Department of Health and Social Care releasing the first tranche of this capital funding, totalling £3million, back in February to Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust (WHAT). This will be used to construct a link bridge between the main Worcestershire Royal and the second floor of the Aconbury East building to improve patient flow and increase bed capacity. This work is expected to begin this month.
The rest of the cash boost will be spent on upgraded maternity wards, theatres and children’s services at Worcestershire Royal, while the Alex will get extra money to pay for improvements to the elective care centre, endoscopy, children’s outpatients and an upgrade in theatres.
Rachel is now calling on WAHT bosses to submit their full business case to the Department of Health and Social Care as soon as possible so they can draw down the remainder of the £29.6 million.
The outline business case was approved back in December last year, and the Acute Trust has already received funding to help them progress the design and procurement work to complete the full business case.
Rachel said: “As a Redditch resident myself who uses the Alex, I share everyone’s frustration that our hospital still hasn’t received the funding it was promised last summer.
“I have been lobbying hard on this since I was first elected which played a significant role in getting £3million released early, however we now need to see the rest of the £29.6million.
“After meetings with health ministers and getting in contact with Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, it is clear that the Government is not holding this process up. The money is there ready and waiting to go, the Acute Trust just need to submit their full business case. The ball is in the Acute Trust’s court. I’m calling on them to submit the full business case as soon as possible.”
