New £12.8m treatment centre to be built at hospital

More than £50m of funding for improvements across Leicester's three hospitals has been announced, including a new £12.8m urgent treatment centre (UTC).

NHS England has confirmed the new centre will be at the Leicester Royal Infirmary, with construction expected to start in the first quarter of 2026 before it opens the following year.

University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust (UHL) will also receive £39m to invest across the three sites under its control, with refurbishments, new laboratories and training facilities among the planned improvements.

The purpose-built UTC will replace the current minor injuries and minor illnesses service at the LRI and will include larger clinical rooms.

It will be next to the Medical Same Day Emergency Care (M-SDEC) unit and a second storey will also be constructed for the future expansion of theatres.

The funding for the three sites is part of the national New Hospital Programme (NHP) with work expected to start in early 2026 and finish in early 2028.

At Leicester General Hospital,a previously unused space within the new East Midlands Planned Care Centre (EMPCC) will be refurbished and a new home will be built for the Hearing and Balance service.

The Baldwin Lodge at Glenfield Hospital will be refurbished to accommodate occupational health teams currently based at the LRI.

At the LRI, there are plans for a six-storey extension to the Windsor Building and refurbishment of space in the Victoria and Jarvis buildings.

Services will also be relocated from Knighton Street, UHL said, and laboratories will be created for Immunology and Cytogenetics. Inpatient pharmacy services will also be expanded.

UHL chief executive Richard Mitchell said: "The new Urgent Treatment Centre will make it easier for patients to access the right care quickly, reducing waiting times and improving their experience.

"The enabling works will mean we can move services and teams into purpose-built facilities and pave the way for the main construction phase of the NHP in 2032.

"Securing this funding is good news for everyone – colleagues, patients and partners – and is a big step forward in delivering our long-term vision to be leading in healthcare, trusted in communities."

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