Chief Executive to approve up to £300,000 investment in new fire safety precautions to keep Walnuttree Hospital open until 2007

10 December 2004

A two-year programme of work is being proposed to increase the safety of patients and staff at the Walnuttree Hospital.

The independent fire safety review instigated by the West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust and recommendations from the Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service have combined to produce a plan to reduce the risk of fire while new facilities are built in Sudbury to replace the Victorian building.

Chief Executive Chris Bown is optimistic that he can approve the £200,000-£300,000 expenditure needed over the next two years at a planned meeting on Monday. Walnuttree Hospital can then be kept open to inpatients and outpatients until a new facility is opened by the Suffolk West Primary Care Trust in December 2007.

The independent review was the most comprehensive fire risk assessment that had ever been made of the former workhouse. It had enabled the Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service to make further recommendations to bring the Walnuttree up to the standard expected of a building of its age.

The recommended work includes such things as: fire compartmentalisation, updating of fire alarm sounders and sprinklers.

“Having reviewed the recommendations from Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service today I wanted to share these with the people of Sudbury as soon as possible.

Without this review and assessment process we were not working with the most comprehensive information with regards to patient safety which is why the independent report was commissioned.

Now we know the condition of the building and the work that needs to be carried out to ensure the facilities at the Walnuttree can remain open until December 2007. I believe that it is an acceptable level of investment and I will authorise the work to be carried out.”

A planned meeting of community representatives, NHS and social care organisations, will go ahead in Sudbury, on Monday December 13 to discuss the report and the work recommended in detail.

This will now enable the community of Sudbury to engage with the PCT in the development of new services for Sudbury by 2007.