Clatterbridge reaches half way point

Laing O’Rourke celebrates the half way point in the construction of The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre in Liverpool.

The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust and Laing O’Rourke celebrated the half way point in the construction of a new cancer hospital in Liverpool yesterday (18 Oct).

Exterior building work is almost complete on the 11-storey specialist treatment centre that is on track to open in 2020.

During a ceremony at the site, Phil Edgington, Chair of The Clatterbridge Cancer thanked staff from Laing O’Rourke for their work so far on the landmark building that will transform cancer care in the region.

Patient Becky Brothwood also addressed workers and invited guests, speaking of the importance of Liverpool’s first dedicated cancer centre, providing cutting edge research as well as outstanding care and treatment.

Becky, 21, a student at Bangor University who was treated at Clatterbridge following a diagnosis of ovarian cancer in 2015, said: “I remember when I was a patient seeing plans for the new hospital on a computer screen so it is really exciting to be here and see the building take shape.

“The new hospital will be a huge boost to cancer care in the area, with modern facilities and improved accessibility of a huge number of patients.”

The Trust, which provides specialist cancer services for Merseyside and Cheshire as well as carrying out vital research into treatments, plans to expand its services with the new 11-storey hospital when it opens in 2020 in the heart of The Knowledge Quarter, putting it at the centre of a thriving medical, scientific and technology community.

Further developments are also planned at the current site of The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre in Wirral, following completion of the new Liverpool centre.

The new Clatterbridge Cancer Centre will provide specialist chemotherapy and other drug therapies, including immunotherapy, radiotherapy, inpatient and outpatient care, cancer support and rehabilitation, bone marrow transplant and urgent cancer care. There will also be a dedicated teenage and young adult unit.

It will care for a population of 2.3 million people from across Merseyside, Cheshire and beyond, with solid tumours and blood cancers, and will also carry out clinical trials of new cancer treatments.

The new hospital will be in addition to The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre’s existing hospitals in Wirral and Aintree, and its chemotherapy and outpatient services in other hospitals across the region including Southport, Chester, Halton, St Helen’s and Liverpool.

Phil Edgington, Chair of The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre, said: “This year The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre celebrated its 60^th birthday so it is fitting we are here today to celebrate this milestone in the construction of our new hospital.

“When completed this centre will help us deliver even more vital treatment, more lifesaving clinical trials and more innovations for the next 60 years and beyond.

“It will help us save an additional 700 lives every single year, leaving a lasting legacy for patients and their families in Merseyside and Cheshire.”

Liam Cummins, Laing O'Rourke’s Head of UK Building said: “Our team has used its considerable engineering expertise and innovation in healthcare to reach this half-way point in construction and I am incredibly proud of their efforts.

“In 2011, we delivered Liverpool’s first radiotherapy facility, in Aintree to Clatterbridge ahead of time and on budget so being trusted to deliver Liverpool’s first specialist cancer hospital was testament to the skills of our healthcare delivery team.

“After the milestone celebrations, we will continue to focus on meeting the handover date in Spring 2020 and I know everyone involved will feel proud of the role they have played in improving the facilities needed for specialist cancer care in Merseyside and Cheshire.”

Delivery of the construction of the new Clatterbridge Cancer Centre is being led by Laing O'Rourke working in collaboration with partners including architects BDP, structural and building services design engineers AECOM.

Construction of the site is expected to be completed in the spring of 2020 with the new hospital expected to welcome its first patients in the summer of the same year.