When Carillion started construction of the Midland Metropolitan Hospital in Smethwick in 2016 it was supposed to be completed by October 2018 and cost £350m.
However, Carillion went bust in January 2018 and, after a substantial hiatus, a new contractor – Balfour Beatty – stepped in.
When Balfour Beatty took over in 2019 it was hoped that it would be able to get everything finished by 2021. When covid arrived, that became 2022.
Then in October 2021 the hospital trust said that the 2022 opening date was in jeopardy because of covid-related shortages of material and labour. The building programme also had to be revised to accommodate a new external façade in light of post-Grenfell fire safety regulations.
In 2022 a new opening date of May 2024 was set, with costs now put at £600m, according to the most recent National Audit Office report on the new hospitals programme.
Today, the Sandwell & West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust board has finally given the Midland Metropolitan University Hospital the green light to open on 6th October 2024.
The nine-storey building, with a gross internal floor area of 85,924 sqm, is the largest acute care hospital in the region, with approximately 700 beds for inpatients.
Lindsay McGibbon, managing director of Balfour Beatty’s regional buildings business, said: “This is a momentous moment for everyone at Balfour Beatty and the Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust.
“Achieving this milestone was only made possible thanks to years of hard work and dedication from our people, who deserve a special mention for safely and successfully delivering this long-awaited, transformative hospital which will deliver significant benefits for the local community for years to come.”
Sir David Nicholson, chairman of Sandwell & West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “This is truly a key moment for our patients, people, and population as we know that this winter, we will be delivering emergency care in an environment which exceeds expectations and delivers benefits in wellbeing both for patients and our staff.
“Today our board carefully considered extensive information about all aspects of the programme to deliver the new hospital safely. We are assured of the clinical safety, patient, and staff experience case for opening and transferring patients.
“These key milestones mark the final steps in our journey towards opening the Midland Metropolitan University Hospital, which is poised to become the centre of acute and emergency care at our trust.”
