Extension building at Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital gets the green light
A bid for the construction of a rear extension at the Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital in Cramlington has received planning permission.
The proposals by Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust for the two-storey decant building have been approved by Northumberland County Council planning officers under delegated powers.
The first floor will contain a 30-bed ward, which will mean the current wards in the hospital can be decanted in turn for work to take place.
The ground floor will host a pathology laboratory for blood sciences and two cath labs, where diagnostic tests for heart conditions take place.
Soft landscaping will be incorporated within the development such as Northumberland Meadow Mix grassland, mixed shrubs and six new trees.
Additional hard landscaping was also proposed to allow for walkways between the external areas of the hospital and the proposed building.
The planning officers’ report includes the following: “The scale, massing and form of the proposal is clearly subordinate to the main hospital building and has a clean-lined, rectilinear form when compared to the original building.
“It is not considered that it causes an adverse impact upon the visual appearance of the immediate or wider area.
“The proposal would integrate with the main building through a constructed link walkway – ensuring it is not a detached, standalone building.”
These plans are part of a project to carry out remedial works within the existing hospital. The work to repair and improve aspects of the hospital building follows a legal settlement with the original developer in 2022.