The Government is yet to approve plans for a new hospital in County Durham despite pledging to build it in 2020. 

A purpose-built facility to replace Shotley Bridge Hospital in Consett was due to open in 2025, but has faced severe delays. 

The plans were approved in March 2023 but construction work is yet to start at Genesis Way. Officials in charge of the scheme have been forced to redesign the site due to funding pressures. 

And despite the significant work that has gone into the scheme so far, local councillors continue to question whether it will ever go ahead. Yet, a Durham County Council health scrutiny committee meeting was told that final sign off from the government is due later this year. 

The Northern Echo: The plans were approved in March 2023 but construction work is yet to start at Genesis Way. The plans were approved in March 2023 but construction work is yet to start at Genesis Way. (Image: The Northern Echo)

Locals say the severe delays to the project are down to it being included as part of Boris Johnson’s pledge to build 40 new hospitals throughout the UK by 2030.

Councillor Dominic Haney, of Consett South, said: “It’s totally intolerable that what we are going to end up with is something inferior to what was originally promised. Boris, Matt Hancock, and the Tory MP we have were very happy to stick it in their New Hospital Programme, which if anything has held the whole process up. 

“It’s totally deplorable and the more I think about it the angrier I get. My community is being denied a facility that should have been well on its way by now.”

The Northern Echo: Cllr Dominic Haney outside the existing Shotley Bridge Hospital, which was described as very tired by health officials Cllr Dominic Haney outside the existing Shotley Bridge Hospital, which was described as very tired by health officials (Image: Cllr Dominic Haney)

Shotley Bridge was not among the original list of sites selected for the New Hospital Programme in 2020 - and when NHS England drew up its own list of 55 sites in need of renovation a year earlier, the County Durham site was also not included. 

However, the government said Shotley Bridge was added at a later date “following an assessment that showed it met the longstanding criteria for selection including clinical need and backlog maintenance”. 

Despite the delays, the County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust, New Hospital Programme and the Integrated Care Board say they remain committed to delivering the scheme. 

The revised design and detailed costs are due to be considered by the investment committee next week. Approval to progress the design is awaited and is due to go before the Treasury in June. 

Nick Davy, portfolio lead for the New Hospitals Programme, suggested that scheme is set for approval later this year. He added: “We’re not in a position to give you that cast iron guarantee today - but we are now moving forward to the investment committee meeting.”

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The Northern Echo: The site where the new hospital will be built The site where the new hospital will be built (Image: The Northern Echo)

The Shotley Bridge project is the cheapest of all those on the New Hospital programme, yet has not been able to avoid funding issues. 

The overall estimated total cost of the build is now between £50-60m, which is “significantly above where we started out two years ago,” the meeting was told. 

Despite all the complications so far, cllr Kevin Earley, of Benfieldside, just wants to see spades in the ground. “I really hope they get their act together and let people see that we will have a new hospital and it will be an improvement,” he said.