THE Women and Children’s Hospital, which would have been part of the Royal Cornwall Hospital (Treliske) complex in Truro, is one of 25 new builds under threat following the Labour government’s reappraisal of public finances.

Expected to cost £291-million, it was one of 40 new hospitals across England promised in the 2019 Conservative manifesto to address issues with the capacity, age and condition of parts of the NHS estate.

But in a letter to all MPs, health secretary Wes Streeting declared the last government’s New Hospital Programme (NHP) “undeliverable and unaffordable”, adding: “This government wants to see the NHP completed, but we are not prepared to offer people false hope about how soon they will benefit from the facilities they deserve.”

The unit was scheduled to begin building in earnest next year, for completion in 2028. News it might never materialise came as a blow to those anticipating better facilities in the far west.

Plans were approved in May 2023 by then health secretary Steve Barclay. The following month, the Royal Cornwall Hospital Trust (RCHT) released a computer-generated 3D film to show how the state-of-the-art hospital, designed by architects Stride Treglown, could look when built.

The new wing would serve as the main entrance for the main hospital, and unite women’s and children’s services - maternity, obstetric and gynaecology services, and neonatal/paediatric care - in one dedicated building. Key features included consultant and midwife-led birthing suites; a more spacious neonatal intensive care unit; transitional care facilities with family rooms; and a dedicated day assessment unit for maternity patients.

Similar services would be located more appropriately, for example siting a dedicated paediatric assessment unit on the ground floor, closer to the existing paediatric emergency department, significantly improving patient experience and enabling clinical staff to work together as a multi-disciplinary team.

Initial work was required to move existing services so the new hospital could sit between Trelawny Wing and the Tower Block. This started immediately with the demolition of six decommissioned houses on Penventinnie Lane to create the construction site compound.

The new Trelawny Scanning Suite and Lowen Ward opened in June 2023, and a new pathology building is due to commence construction later this year.

But nationally, the project was beset with delays, rising costs and concerns.Seven more hospitals were added to the programme and prioritised due to the presence of reinforced autoclave aerated concrete (RAAC)and the safety risks that came with it.

The National Audit Office (NAO),the UK’s independent public spending watchdog, wondered if building so many new hospitals could pose “substantial risks to value for money if this were to lead to hospitals that were too small to meet the needs of the communities they serve, or if costs were to be inflated because so many hospitals were being built at once”.

Cherilyn Mackrory, former Conservative MP for Truro and Falmouth, recalled how the project was initially given the go-ahead just before her election in 2019.

“Shortly afterwards, COVID struck. Priorities shifted, understandably, and progress delayed,” she said. “When we emerged, I found that the expected budget for the build had more than doubled. Some of this was due to the construction inflation that we are all familiar with; however, some of the increase was from changes to the build specification.

“The then Secretary of State had wanted to reduce the cost by changing the build. One of the most pleasing aspects of this build, however, was that the frontline staff had had an input into the design. They felt part of the project.”

This opinion was backed up by consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist Jon Clarke, joint clinical director of the Women and Children’s Care Group, who said: “Our geographical isolation means that many of those working at the hospital are also parents to children born here ... It means so much to our staff, as well as to the whole community, that this new hospital will soon be a reality.”

After much negotiation, HM Treasury had given the thumbs-up by October 2023 and enabling works had begun. “The last assurance I received from the leadership team at RCHT that all was progressing to plan was in June, shortly before the General Election,” said Mrs Mackrory.

The news that all might be up in the air was received with disappointment and anger by MPs past and present of all parties.

St Ives Liberal Democrat MP Andrew George wrote to Mr Streeting to protest. “The news is both shocking and disappointing,” he said, adding that it was also “unsurprising, in that the previous Conservative government should promise these ‘new hospitals’ when they knew full-well they never budgeted the money to deliver them”.

He called for Mr Streeting to meet all of Cornwall’s MPs as soon as possible. “Parents at my end of Cornwall can’t seek alternative services to the west, south or north. The geographic case alone should be sufficient to persuade the review team and you to support this vitally important project.”

Mr George also called for Treliske’s current Princess Alexandra maternity suite to be considered in the same way as the seven projects with afflicted by RAAC, “as that building has similar substantive safety risks”.

Cherilyn Mackrory said that“despite stepping back from public life and letting the new MPs get on with their roles”, she felt compelled to comment, for personal reasons as much as professional - as chair of the All Party Parliamentary Groups in Westminster for Baby Loss and for Women’s Health, she introduced the Pregnancy Loss Certificate for parents who had, like her, lost a baby before 24 weeks.

“One of the main reasons I entered politics was to highlight baby loss and to improve health outcomes for our women and children,” she said.“It is particularly frustrating, then, to see the new Secretary of State put Cornwall’s build under review ... I hope our much-needed hospital can continue without further delay.”

Jayne Kirkham, current Labour MP for Truro and Falmouth, argued that Mr Streeting’s letter means the new hospital builds may be delayed or the scale of the builds reassessed, “not that they’ll never be built”.

She added: “The Conservatives left the new hospitals programme unfunded with no money left after March, and then called an election and essentially ran away.

“Cornwall’s Labour MPs have met with Wes Streeting to reinforce just how important the plans for the Women’s and Children’s Unit are to Cornwall, and how crucial its completion is to us here. We will continue to keep the pressure up during the period of the review.”

RCHT chief executive Steve Williamson described building the new Women and Children’s Hospital as “a top priority”, adding: “While we are disappointed plans for our project are among those to be reviewed by Government, we are hopeful the progress made so far will put us in a strong position to ensure we are prioritised to proceed with our scheme as soon as possible.

“We welcome the support of our local MPs in realising the longstanding ambition for a Women and Children’s Hospital in Cornwall, which will bring huge benefits in terms of local clinical care for our patients; an improved work environment for our staff; and much wider benefits to the overall local economy in terms of jobs and income to the county.”