03 May 2012

Planning permission for a new medium secure unit (MSU) on the St Bernard’s Hospital site was granted by Ealing Borough Council at its planning meeting on Wednesday 25 April 2012. Subject to a section 106 agreement, this approval enables West London Mental Health NHS Trust to construct an 80 bed MSU to create a single male medium secure campus at the south east corner of the site, thereby improving services and meeting commissioner requirements.

Vickie Holcroft, Programme Director said: “We are delighted with the Council’s decision. This is a major landmark in the process of providing more suitable accommodation for our medium secure patients and ensuring we are able to continue this service, which has been provided from this site since 1986.”

An outline business case for the project is now with NHS London (the Trust’s strategic health authority) and the Department of Health for approval. A decision is expected this summer and if the Trust receives approval, the St Bernard’s site will be opening its new MSU in spring 2015.

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Notes to Editors:

West London Mental Health NHS Trust submitted its planning application for the construction of a new medium secure unit to Ealing Council on Monday 20 February 2012.

Of the four options put forward for the site’s redevelopment, the Board selected option 3 as its preference:

• Option 1 – reconfiguration of John Conolly Wing (JCW)

• Option 2 – reconfiguration and extension of the Orchard

• Option 3 – construct new medium secure unit (MSU) on JCW site

• Option 4 – construct MSU in centre of site

The St Bernard’s Gateway Review took place from Tuesday 20 March to Thursday 22 March 2012. Gateway Reviews are carried out on all major Government projects to help identify the possible risks, make sure they are moving in the right direction and that the project and its management team is ready to progress to the next stage.

Information about the proposed redevelopment of the St Bernard’s site is available on the Trust’s website at http://www.wlmht.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/ID12015-002-St-Bernards-Exhibition-Panels_FINAL-WEBSITE_6.pdf

West London Mental Health NHS Trust is one of the largest mental health trusts in the country. It provides a full range of mental health services for children, adults and older people living in the London boroughs of Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham and Hounslow, in addition to specialist and forensic mental health services, including high secure services at Broadmoor Hospital. It aims to meet the diverse needs of a local population of nearly 700,000 people and employs around 4,300 staff across 32 sites.

Contact details: Celia Dadzie, Communications Manager, 020 8354 8718 or celia.dadzie@wlmht.nhs.uk.