Demolition work begins at crumbling Stepping Hill hospital unit

Demolition work has started on the crumbling outpatients building at Stepping Hill hospital. The Stockport site has long been struggling with its ageing buildings becoming increasingly decrepit.

Two ceiling collapses in March followed the 'immediate' complete closure of the hospital’s Outpatient B department in November. The closure came because of a 'significant deterioration of the structure of the building', according to inspectors.

That outpatient unit is now only providing 51 per cent of the appointments it should. Some of the services that were provided in the Outpatient B unit are now operating at less than the previous capacity.

READ MORE: Major Greater Manchester hospital's outpatients, radiology department and critical care unit 'quite literally crumbling', says MP

"A small number of services, including ophthalmology, are still to be found temporary homes due to the need to accommodate large pieces of equipment that are not easy to move," read a report from Stockport NHS Foundation Trust chief executive Karen James to the most recent board meeting in April.

"Our estates team is prioritising efforts to find alternative accommodation for those services as well as permanent homes for the others as we move forward with the demolition of Outpatients B."

The first partial ceiling collapse in recent weeks occurred on March 4 in the hospital’s radiology department because of a leak, which meant it had to cancel several scheduled procedures. The trust has not disclosed how many appointments were affected, the Guardian has reported.

The second collapse happened the very next day in its critical care unit, it has also been reported, where seriously ill patients receiving intensive and high-dependency care are treated.