01.02.19
Welsh Government gives green light for new £40m Rhyl community hospital
A £40m funding package for a new community hospital serving Rhyl has been approved by the Welsh Government.
The North Denbighshire Community Hospital will be built next to the town’s Royal Alexandra Hospital, bringing new hospital services including a new 28-bed ward, community dental services, and a three-storey clinical facility to the area.
The health minister Vaughan Gething said the development would provide a range of services closer to the local community in Rhyl and reduce the pressure on services at the nearby Ysbyty Glan Clwyd.
He stated: “The North Denbighshire Community Hospital will be a key development for healthcare in the area.
“The development will also bring major benefits to the area linked with the wider regeneration plans for Rhyl.”
Work on the development is set to begin in autumn 2020, and a refurbishment of the Royal Alexandra Hospital is due to be completed by the end of 2022.
The health minister added that he was pleased that the “historic and important” existing hospital building had been retained alongside the new purpose build.
Gary Doherty, chief executive of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, commented: “This development will transform the way we deliver care to people living in North Denbighshire.
“We’re very excited about the potential this project has to help us transform the way healthcare is provided in the Rhyl area, and how it can support the way services are provided at Ysbyty Glan Clwyd.”
The new three-storey clinical facility will include a minor injuries unit, sexual health and older persons mental health facilities, a therapy assessment unit known as an IV suite, radiology services, and both outpatient and inpatient facilities.
The refurbished Grade II Royal Alex building will be used for counselling and interview rooms and office accommodation.
Ann Jones, Vale of Clwyd AM, said: “I’m absolutely delighted for the area, my constituents and for the future of health services here in north Wales.”