The Adults, Wellbeing and Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee of County Durham Council was scheduled to receive an update on the Shotley Bridge Hospital redevelopment project. The meeting's agenda also included standard procedural items.

Shotley Bridge Hospital Update

A significant portion of the meeting was scheduled to focus on the Shotley Bridge Community Hospital (SBCH) redevelopment. This project has been part of the New Hospital Programme (NHP) since 2020. The redevelopment was approved by the Secretary of State for Health in January 2025, with SBCH designated as a wave 1 scheme for completion between 2029 and 2030. The allocated budget for this development is £63.4 million, an increase from the £46.2 million originally planned in 2020.

The identified land for the new hospital is located in Consett, an area experiencing considerable commercial and housing development. Planning approval for the site is already in place. The programme was reinstated in 2025 with a focus on updating the Outline Business Case (OBC) to prepare for land acquisition and construction by February 2029.

The report pack outlined several progress milestones and timeframes. These included the Trust Board's approval of a Short Form Business Case in March 2026 to advance land acquisition and soft stripping of the site. Approval of this Short Form Business Case was also pending from the New Hospital Programme (NHP) Investment Committee by 28 April 2026. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was released by NHP on 11 May 2026, confirming funding availability for drawdown. RIBA Stage 3 was scheduled to be achieved by 22 May 2026. Outline Business Case (OBC) approval was anticipated from the Trust Board in June 2026, with a subsequent drawdown from the MOU expected by the end of June 2026 to enable the Trust to enter into a development agreement with a developer. The OBC was scheduled to be presented to the Integrated Care Board (ICB) and the New Hospital Programme Joint Investment Group in August 2026.

The report pack indicated that public and stakeholder engagement regarding the project's scope and service transformation opportunities had been undertaken by the previous County Durham CCG and County Durham Care Partnership between 2019 and 2021.

The meeting was scheduled to be attended by Councillor N L Brown (Chair), Councillor C Lines (Vice-Chair), Councillors R Bell, S Bowron, J Cook, ML Franklin, A Gray, D Haney, A Hillam, E Hopgood, E Hunt, P Mountford, B Quirey, and T Redmond. Also in attendance were co-opted members Mrs R Gott and Ms A Stobbart, and representatives from Healthwatch County Durham.

The documents related to this meeting are the Agenda frontsheet Wednesday 13-May-2026 13.00 Adults Wellbeing and Health Overview and Scrutiny C.pdf and the Public reports pack Wednesday 13-May-2026 13.00 Adults Wellbeing and Health Overview and Scrutiny.pdf.