Ground has been broken as the £45m redevelopment of Benenden Hospital’s gets underway.
Representatives from Benenden Hospital and from Willmott Dixon Construction, which won the contract to do the work, put spades into the ground this week, heralding the start of phase one of the two-and-a-half-year programme.
The redevelopment will transform Benenden into a state-of-the-art hospital poised to meet the future’s changing healthcare needs. Benenden Hospital caters for members of benenden health, which runs the hospital, private patients and NHS Choose and Book referrals.
Works are due to be completed by December 2016.
Hospital director, Jane Abbott, said: “The start of this major redevelopment marks an exciting new chapter in the 107-year history of the hospital.
“The result will see the hospital becoming a state-of-the-art first-class facility which will offer increased services to our private and NHS patients, as well as ensuring we meet the needs of benenden health members through the delivery of high-quality patient care.”
Chairman of the hospital’s board of governors, Graham Hadfield OBE, added: “We’re proud of our long history of delivering first-class healthcare services and the redevelopment ensures that this will be safeguarded for our future patients for many years to come.
The redevelopment will transform Benenden Hospital into a leading centre for health and wellbeing. It will result in single bedrooms throughout, a new main entrance with adjacent car park and drop-off area, scanning and diagnostic imaging all under one roof, an expansion of the outpatient area, modernisation of theatres, a new endoscopy unit and considerable refurbishment throughout.
A feature of the redevelopment will be a glass-roofed reception area providing patients and visitors with a relaxation area and class leading catering facilities.