St Helier Hospital's upcoming two-year closure sparks fears for mothers and babies

Fears for mothers and babies as south London maternity unit faces two-year closureLocal leaders are now demanding assurance that services will return

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There are fears for the future of maternity services at a south London hospital following the discovery of harmful bacteria in the women’s health block.

Maternity services at St Helier Hospital are set to be temporarily relocated for two years from next spring for essential repairs to the ageing facility.

They are understood to have been prompted by ongoing water infrastructure issues and the detection of low levels of Legionella and Pseudomonas and will necessitate the temporary closure of the unit for inspection and repair work.

The announcement has sparked concern among Merton Council and local MPs, who are now demanding urgent assurances.

They seek guarantees that the relocation will be strictly temporary, that services will indeed return to St Helier, and that any hospitals accommodating patients possess the necessary capacity to do so safely.

The development emerges in the same month that the hospital secured £57m to expand its A&E department. Recent Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspections revealed that the A&E was routinely operating at more than ten times its intended capacity.

Urgent repairs are required to the women’s health block at St Helier HospitalHarrison Galliven/LDRS

The Trust said that while “the building’s water is safe” and closely monitored through regular testing and filtration, “significant work is needed to provide a sustainable and permanent solution, as the pre-war pipework will need to be replaced”.

The Trust estimates the repairs will take approximately two years to complete, and aims to keep as many services on site as possible.

Announcing the works last week, Mat Shaw, group chief executive at St George’s, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals and Health Group, said: “This situation is immensely frustrating given the hard work that’s gone into improving our services, as recognised in our recent CQC report, and the national maternity experience survey, as well as feedback from the people we look after.”

He added: “It is clear to me, our staff who work in the building, and those who are cared for in it, that we have great women’s services at St Helier.”

However, the Trust insisted the repairs were not possible “while maintaining a good birth, gynaecology and fertility experience and safe environment for babies and families in the building”.

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While the locations for relocated services have not yet been confirmed, nearby hospitals including Epsom, Croydon University and Kingston are expected to be considered.

Political pressure has intensified in the week following the Trust’s announcement, with cross-party concerns raised about the future of St Helier’s maternity services.

St Helier’s A&E department is to be expandedHarrison Galliven/LDRS

Last week, Merton’s Labour-led Council expressed “strong opposition” to the proposals, urging the NHS “to confirm they will not reduce, permanently close, or relocate maternity services”.

In a letter to Shaw, Merton’s Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care, Councillor Peter McCabe, and Mitcham and Morden MP Dame Siobhain McDonagh said any closure or relocation “would be highly significant for the communities we represent and would cause deep concern and distress amongst our residents”.

They added that any changes must be “fully transparent, properly evidenced and subject to meaningful engagement with the Council, residents, Healthwatch, MPs and local partners.”

Meanwhile, Liberal Democrat MPs in Sutton, Merton and Surrey have written to Health Minister Karin Smyth seeking urgent clarification on the proposals.

Bobby Dean (Carshalton and Wallington), Luke Taylor (Sutton and Cheam), Helen Maguire (Epsom and Ewell) and Paul Kohler (Wimbledon) questioned whether all alternatives have been explored, and warned maternity services at Kingston Hospital are already under pressure.

Speaking about about the upcoming repairs, Mr Kohler said: “It is especially worrying that services supporting women, mothers, babies and vulnerable patients are once again being affected by an ageing NHS estate. Staff at St Helier continue to provide outstanding care in extremely difficult conditions and deserve far better support.

“The recent announcement of investment in St Helier’s Emergency Department gave residents genuine belief that the hospital was finally beginning to get the funding it needs. This latest development makes it even more important there is full transparency about the decisions being taken and what happens next.”

Paul Kohler is the Lib Dem MP for WimbledonMerton Lib Dems

The recently awarded £57 million NHS investment for St Helier’s emergency department will fund a larger, redesigned facility with improved clinical spaces, alongside a new Urgent Treatment Centre and expanded Same Day Emergency Care services to reduce avoidable admissions and overnight stays.

The emergency department recently came under scrutiny after the CQC downgraded its overall rating from “Good” to “Requires Improvement” following concerns about patient care and “significant” overcrowding leading to corridor care.

The repair proposals also come against the backdrop of continued delays to the Sutton Specialist Emergency Care Hospital (SECH) in Belmont, with construction not expected to begin until the 2030s. The Sutton SECH was first proposed in 2020, with the aim of handling major emergencies.

MPs, as well as Lib Dem leaders in Sutton and Merton councils have compared the SECH delays to hospitals prioritised for rebuilding due to RAAC safety risks.

“We firmly believe St Helier Hospital, and the proposed new Sutton SECH must be prioritised in the same manner before more essential services are forced to relocate, ” they said.