Green light for new £36million Sunderland Eye Hospital as construction moves closer

Plans for Sunderland's new £36million eye infirmary have moved a step closer with NHS trust bosses given the green light to enter contracts with construction partner Kier.

Approval was given at a Sunderland City Council meeting on Thursday, with work expected to start on the Vaux Site location before Christmas.

The new hospital will replace the existing eye infirmary in Queen Alexandra Road, which are now over 75 years old.

All clinical services provided from the existing infirmary will transfer to the new facility to be delivered from a purpose-built environment in a much more accessible city centre location.

Planning approval for the scheme was originally granted in November 2021, with a subsequent planning application approved in November 2022.

The news comes after an extended period of consultation over the summer to make sure the new hospital meets the needs of local people, while eye infirmary staff have been working closely with architects and planners to give their time and expertise in this critical design phase.

Hoardings for the new development will soon go up on the Riverside Sunderland site and construction is expected to take two years.

South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust chief executive Ken Bremner MBE said: "We are delighted that we can now move forward with construction of our new Eye Hospital and finally start to see work happening on site.

"I want to thank our staff at Sunderland Eye Infirmary who have worked so hard to help us get the design and infrastructure right for the new facility and all those patients and members of the public who gave us their feedback which has also been taken into consideration.

"It has taken some time to get to this point, but we will now start to see things moving at pace.

"The city has always been home to specialist eye services in our region and we are very proud to continue this legacy for many future generations.”

City council leader Councillor Graeme Miller added: "The new Eye Hospital is a flagship part of our Riverside Sunderland development and we are delighted to work in partnership with the NHS to make this happen, creating a space that is befitting of the exceptional level of care that the nationally renowned Eye Hospital team deliver, as well as a place that we can be proud to welcome people to.

"We’re immensely proud of the transformation we are leading of our city centre in Sunderland. The new Eye Hospital is just one part of a huge programme of change that is creating places where people will live, work and play.”