‘PLAN B’ FOR WATFORD GENERAL WILL MEAN ‘SIGNIFICANT DISRUPTION’ TO PATIENTS AND STAFF

Patients and staff at Watford General face nearly ten years of turmoil as the West Herts Trust is forced to fall back on refurbishing old buildings.

A likely Plan B will mean building work going on to 2033.

• Unaffordable £1.4bn triple tower hospital likely to be replaced by cheaper option, responding to cuts demanded by Reeves Review of failed ‘New Hospital Programme’
• Report drawn up in 2022 gives details of cheaper option, including refurbished main block and smaller new build
• Architects admit likely £800m Plan B option will bring ‘significant disruption to the existing services while the site continues to operate during construction.’
• Plan will ‘inevitably prolong the overall duration of works increasing cost.’
• Option ‘provides a convoluted path to some services. This includes the diagnostic services that are split across three locations.’

The plans (Option 3) are set out in a paper known as the RIBA Stage One report.