A golf course in Surrey has been identified as the preferred site for a new hospital that would replace the ageing Frimley Park Hospital.
Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust said part of the land currently occupied by Pine Ridge Golf Club in Frimley had been selected following an assessment of 18 potential sites within a five-mile radius of the existing hospital.
Under the proposal, the Trust would acquire around 55 acres of land from the wider 265-acre estate owned by local charity Frimley Fuel Allotments.
However, the Trust added that no final decision had been taken and the land had not been purchased.
An agreement is in place to allow further technical assessments and public engagement to take place while plans are developed.
What are the plans for the replacement hospital?
The new hospital is planned as a replacement for Frimley Park Hospital, where large sections of the building were constructed using reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), a material that has raised long-term safety concerns across the NHS estate.
Sacyr UK has been provisionally chosen to lead on the delivery of the replacement hospital under the Hospital 2.0 Alliance.
If approved, the facility would provide emergency, inpatient and maternity services in a purpose-built hospital designed to meet future healthcare needs.
Most outpatient, diagnostic and community services would continue to operate from the existing Frimley Park site.
The Trust has launched a public engagement exercise, inviting residents, patients and staff to give feedback on both the proposed site and wider plans for healthcare services in the area.
Further work will examine issues including transport links, traffic impacts and environmental considerations before a planning application is submitted.
Construction is expected to begin between 2028 and 2029, subject to planning approval and national business case approvals through the government's New Hospital Programme.
The trust said public engagement would continue as plans progress, with residents able to take part in meetings, surveys and consultation events before any formal planning application is submitted.
Reactions to the chosen location
The Surrey Heath MP, Dr Al Pinkerton, and environmental campaigner, Save Surrey Countryside, have had negative reactions to the chosen location of the site, along with some local protesters.
Pinkerton told BBC Radio Surrey that it was “the worst people site that could be chosen” as it would present challenges of getting to the current site and add difficulties of trying to navigate down a single carriageway roads, beyond different schools, creating clogs in the Frimley area in the morning and afternoons.
Sally Blake, a campaigner from Save the Surrey Countryside, said that the destruction of the woodland was “unthinkable vandalism.”
The Trust will continue to collect public feedback regarding the site, and “asks that discussions remain respectful so everyone’s voice can be heard.”
