The following FAQs have been drafted to address those questions that have been raised during engagement with our staff, service users and carers throughout the developments on Lambeth and Southwark sites.
This has been divided into sections covering the different elements of the Modernisation Programme:
Staff Service User image
Lambeth Hospital
1. How much would it cost to develop the inpatient services at Lambeth Hospital?
An option to develop a new high-quality facility on the Lambeth Hospital site was also looked at. However, this would have meant relocating services during construction, causing major disruption for many years and would have needed additional funding of around £30 million. This was unrealistic and financially unsustainable, and therefore not taken forward.
The preferred option to move inpatient services to the Maudsley Hospital campus to a purpose-built, modern, safe and therapeutic environment to work with the existing investment of the Living Well Network Alliance, accessible (Lambeth) community services. We also feel it will provide the high-quality therapeutic environment for services users in the event a more intensive intervention is required.
2. Why are the inpatient services in Lambeth moving to The Maudsley? Why can’t Lambeth Hospital be redeveloped?
One of the most significant issues with the current Lambeth Hospital ward environment is the lack of privacy and dignity regarding the lack of ensuite bathrooms. The New Douglas Bennett House (NDBH) inpatient wards will fully addresses this.
Each bedroom will have an ensuite bathroom. In addition, the design of the rooms offers service users the ability to lock and unlock their own rooms, which is something that was requested as part of the service user engagement; allowing for a less intrusive model of nursing observation.
Sight lines within the communal areas of the ward are much improved allowing staff to observe from a distance. The service user bedroom design has also been developed to reduce the need for staff to enter each room to observe and improving patient privacy and reducing interruptions. This impacts on people’s recovery and the experience of care they receive – which may reduce the length of stay and other benefits.
For our staff working at Lambeth Hospital working and delivering care is a challenge. This impacts on team morale, recruitment and retention. These issues have been raised by service users, families, and by staff as well as by regulators such as the Care Quality Commission (CQC), whose role is to monitor the quality of services. The Trust recognise the urgent need to improve inpatient accommodation for mental health services.
The clinical benefits associated with NDBH include:
- Clear zones within the room supporting the recovery model of care: entry; storage; ensuite WC and shower; sleep/rest and work/play;
- Creation of a safe therapeutic environment, enhancing the service users’ sense of value and future-proofed for changing needs and acuity levels;
- Generous shower space and ensuite designed with the service user in mind;
- Built in storage based on need, including a bedside table, secure safe and cupboard sized for one week’s worth of clothing;
- Good sight lines both into the room and to the outside with good daylight providing a bright and therapeutic environment;
- Space for a TV, artwork and personalization of the space.
3. Will there be any loss of capacity or service?
A demand and capacity analysis was undertaken for Lambeth, which projected inpatient bed requirement across a ten-year period. Across the Lambeth acute system there will be a reduction of three beds. However, with the planned reduction in length of stay, capacity should increase, not decrease. The number of Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) beds will remain at ten.
Lambeth Hospital inpatients will be transferred to New Douglas Bennett House on the Trust’s Maudsley Campus when it opens.
4. What will happen to the other services like the Library and Chaplaincy?
We have move the library to the Bethlem site and transferring materials to digital wherever possible so that all staff will have remote access to resources. The Chaplaincy will continue to be provided in the New Douglas Bennett House alongside the existing chaplaincy services provided to Southwark wards, older adult services and adolescent services.
5. What will happen to the Lambeth Hospital Site?
Lambeth Hospital will be redeveloped as housing. More than half of the new homes will be affordable. A proportion of these homes will also be for affordable rent and will help those on the Lambeth Council’s waiting list. Money from this housing development will provide investment to fund new, better mental health care and facilities.
The Maudsley Hospital Campus
6. Are there plans to increase car parking on the site?
The Trust have reviewed parking requirements for staff and patients and are in the process of finalising a new Car Park Management Plan. Unfortunately, there are limited parking spaces at Maudsley Hospital and not all staff wishing to park on site will be able to do so.
Parking permits for staff will be allocated using a priority system. Staff with mobility issues and those needing their cars for essential clinical work business will be prioritised.
We are also scoping options for increasing the number of bays at the front of Trust HQ for service users to pre-book. As soon as the new Car Park Management Plan has been approved all staff will be updated, and we will also publicise updated options for visitor parking
7. Will the hospital green spaces be open to the public?
There will be a public route through which opens the site on the eastern boundary and will eventually allow a safe, accessible and convenient link to and from De Crespigny Park to Denmark Hill station. With the north-south link we are creating a nature passage to join up green spaces.
Across from the site is Ruskin Park, one of London’s famous parks. The park was recently declared a ‘Health Park’ in recognition of its health benefits, along with numerous on-site initiatives including a new outdoor gym, partnerships with mental health groups and an active volunteering programme.
The new De Crespigny Park redevelopment, when completed, will include safe and welcoming communal spaces to be enjoyed by all. The architects have designed external spaces that promote positive mental health and wellbeing through the features and planting.
8. What are your plans to minimise construction noise and disruption to inpatients?
As work continues to redevelop the New Douglas Bennett House and the Pears Maudsley Centre, we are working hard to reduce noise and disruption. It has not been possible to temporarily move people out of the three inpatient wards in Aubrey Lewis House as we have no other space available The Trust’s sites that can accommodate these facilities.
We know there has been some unavoidable noise from the works, and we are sorry for any disturbance. Some of the measures we have put in place to try and minimise this are:
Quiet spaces have been allocated on the wards, and we are looking to see how we can find further spaces on the wards where people can be, where there is least possible noise;
Site activities are only allowed Monday to Friday between 8am and 6pm and Saturday 8am until 2pm. Currently site operations end around 5pm due to daylight and the contractor is only intermittently carrying out works on Saturdays;
We have agreed formal limits for noise, dust and vibration with Southwark Council as part of planning permission for the development. There are automatic noise, dust and vibration monitors around the site. These are set to alert management on the site if we are approaching the agreed noise limits so avoidance measures can be taken as quickly as possible;
Future potentially noisy activities have been identified. We are putting in placed mitigation measures, for example, during the foundations phase of the works, the sheet piling rig has been changed to a non-percussion method which had little or no noise and vibration;
Our contractor has signed up for the Considerate Contractor Scheme.
9. Will there be any gym/sports facilities?
We are intending to move the open-air gym from Lambeth Hospital onto the Maudsley site. There is also a bookable gym on the ground floor of the New Douglas Bennett House
10. Shop and Cashpoints
No decisions at this point on how to provide shops or cashpoints have been made, but this is under review.
Contact Us
We welcome your constructive and open conversation; your feedback is important to us.
You can share your questions and/or feedback by emailing;
The Capital Projects & Modernisation Programme Communications Team:
E: ModernisationProgramme@Slam.nhs.uk
