A new QEH: Progress, concerns and what to expect in the future

Lynn’s hospital has taken another step towards its big rebuild – but what does this mean for the 2030 deadline?Many residents’ concerns may have begun to subside after it was confirmed the Queen Elizabeth Hospital would not be affected by the New Hospitals Programme review brought on by the Labour Government. Still, the question remains on everybody’s lips – how long until it is built?We spoke to staff at the QEH and Cllr Jo Rust about progress, concerns, and what patients can expect in the future.

What’s new?Since 2021, some £50million has been invested into modernising the hospital site, with its most recent project being the opening of a new diagnostics centre, which welcomed many to its ribbon-cutting ceremony on Monday.By increasing the number of appointments available to outpatients, it is said the centre will reduce the waiting times for those in need of MRIs and CT scans. “In terms of general outpatient imaging, it will help us to specialise more in-house,” said Alan Williams, the clinical operations manager at the QEH.“This is very much a big part of the new hospital idea, the plan is not to take away from here once the new hospital is up and running. “This centre will be an outpatient imaging facility like in other places.”

He told the Lynn News that facilities like the diagnostics centre have been essential to improving hospitals in places like New Zealand, which holds one of the top 20 positions in healthcare according to the World Index of Healthcare Innovation.“They’ve got them on most corners, so it’s really useful, and ours will provide so much support to patients here.”But this is not the only thing that’s pushing QEH towards its rebuild goal – alongside the new centre, recent additions such as its £12.5million endoscopy unit, Emerson Unit, West Norfolk Eye Centre, maternity unit and dementia-friendly ward have given the hospital a much-needed update as it battles with its outdated structure which is “at the end of its life”. What made the hospital exempt from the review?Jo Rust, an Independent borough councillor and key member of the Save the QEH action group, said the campaign has played a “significant part” in the progress of the hospital, but the push ultimately came from “a very wide and deep” drive “across several different fronts”.After the general election, the Labour government announced it would review the Conservatives’ plans to rebuild more than 40 hospitals across the country by 2030 due to an alleged £21.9billion overspend from the previous party.This review meant that those who were previously promised funding, such as Lynn’s hospital, were left in the dark about whether or not they would receive it. However, in September, Health Secretary Wes Streeting announced that Lynn’s hospital would be one of 21 exempt because of the situation’s urgency.“One of the things that we did as soon as we had the new government is that I wrote to Wes Streeting inviting him to not just come and see our hospital, but to release the funding for it,” Cllr Rust said.“We also met with the new South West Norfolk MP Terry Jermy, who had already committed to doing whatever it would take to ensure that our hospital was seen as a priority.”

Back in August, the group announced that it would begin campaigning again if confirmation was not given.But although the QEH is safe from the review, Cllr Rust said the funding has still not been released, meaning major works towards the 2030 deadline cannot take place yet. “So far, any work that has been done has been at the expense of the QEH themselves,” she said.

“If we don’t see the release of funding any time soon, we will campaign again, which will keep the urgency for a new hospital on the public’s radar and in the media so nobody could claim that they didn’t know the seriousness of the situation here.”So, if major works haven’t begun, what is taking place right now?Well, it’s “all in the planning,” said Paul Brooks, the hospital’s director of estates and facilities.While it may look like there’s not much going on on the grounds, the hospital is working behind the scenes with designers, architects, structural engineers, clinicians and patients to make sure everybody gets their say, and the progress can continue despite the funding not yet being released. “It’s a bit like a new home,” Mr Brooks added.“You want everyone to have a view of how it’s decorated so that everyone is happy in it, and I think it’s the same in a hospital.”Over the past few months, user groups have been held to see what everybody is hoping for with the rebuild.“We want the clinicians, porters, domestics, receptionists and patients to have a part in it,” he added. But could things be delayed like they were during the general election? How can we know the funding won’t be questioned again?The hospital says it is committed to staying on track with the build.“When a government changes, especially when you‘ve worked in the NHS for quite a long time, you know things can slow down when people make decisions,” Mr Brooks said.“I think the challenges going forward will depend very much on what happens in life around us. “When you’re doing a project as big as this, anything from conflict in the Middle East, to supply chains and the economy can change the way the project will work, so we’ve got to stay one step ahead of the curve and try to predict as much as we can and get on with it.”Although the change in government put a spanner in the works, one thing is for certain, the hospital is dedicated to bringing the people of Lynn a facility that they feel confident in.Mr Brooks added: “Patients are coming to the hospital at the moment while they know we’ve got the issues around the panels, the roof and the walls but we try to inform them as much as possible around that because we don’t want them worrying when they come here.”What could things look like by the end of the rebuild? “A New QEH is coming to King’s Lynn and West Norfolk in 2030” are the first words users see when visiting the trust’s ‘new hospital’ website, so what could this healthcare facility look like?Well, the site’s new 1,310-space multi-storey car park and construction has been approved and work is due to start as soon as December.By 2026, the hospital hopes to not only have the car park complete, but also begin building the new QEH itself, and site plans have been released.Last month, Alice Webster, the hospital’s CEO, told the Lynn News: “The New QEH will feature modern construction methods and healthcare innovations to meet the needs of the local population for generations to come.”Like Mr Brooks said, bosses want to make the new QEH something that can work for everyone.