West Worcestershire MP Harriett Baldwin has welcomed a £15 million cash boost to help add extra capacity at the county’s busy hospitals.

The additional money has been allocated to help fund significant improvements to the urgent care services and a brand-new Emergency Department built at the Aconbury Building. The work is due to start next month and will be completed by next Spring.

Harriett has consistently lobbied for significant extra investment in the local health service and raised her concerns about capacity issues at Worcestershire Royal Hospital.

In the last decade, the Trust has built a new breast unit, a new birthing centre, an oncology unit and extra wards created through improvements to upper levels at the Aconbury Building.

The Government has also written off the Trust’s £320 million debt and given the management millions of pounds each year to deal with the extra pressures that come during the winter.

The latest plan will see the Accident and Emergency Department moving out of its current cramped site, and into the ground and first floor of the refurbished Aconbury Building freeing up significant extra capacity for other hospital services.

Harriett commented: “I was re-elected last year on a promise that we would support our local NHS and I am pleased to see this further investment for our very busy acute hospitals.

“I’ve regularly made the point to Ministers that we need to invest significant sums to allow the hospital to grow and this latest cash will make a huge difference.

“The plans are ambitious and there is a clear expectation from Government that the Trust needs to work at pace to make this project happen.

“The NHS has done amazing work coping with the extra challenges of Covid-19 but this year we will need them to catch up on all the procedures that have been delayed by the global pandemic.

“The Government is backing the Trust by investing a further £15 million to allow our hospital to grow and ensure our local NHS is able to offer the best possible service for us and our loved ones.”