PLANS have been approved for a new mental health hospital in North Yorkshire after the previous hospital closed suddenly when it was deemed unsafe.

Bootham Park Hospital in York was shut down in 2015 after the Care Quality Commission highlighted deep concerns following an inspection, which found potential ligature points, staff shortages, as well as scalding water temperatures from bedroom and ward taps, a ward toilet leaking into the ward below and a large ceiling crack which later resulted in it partially collapsing.

The site was closed with six days’ notice, leaving no alternative in-patient facilities until a 24-bed interim hospital was created in York a year later.

Patients were forced to move to alternative sites across the North-East including Roseberry Park in Middlesbrough, West Park in Darlington, The Friarage in Northallerton, Sandwell Park in Hartlepool and Lanchester Road in Durham.

Now the board of directors at Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust, which now runs mental health services in the area, has given the go ahead to progress plans for a new hospital on a preferred site off Haxby Road in York.

The new purpose-designed hospital is expected to be completed in 2019 and will have 72 beds.

There will be two adult, single sex wards and two older people’s wards; one for people with dementia and one for people with mental health problems such as psychosis, severe depression or anxiety.

The announcement follows a public consultation led by NHS Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), on the location of the new hospital and the number and configuration of beds.

The trust also reviewed the number of beds and decided to increase these from 60 to 72 in response to concerns raised during the public consultation and to ensure future demand can be met.

Nick Land, medical director at the trust, said: “People across the Vale of York deserve to have access to the best possible mental health care and this includes having a state-of-the-art hospital.

“The Haxby Road site has the space and layout we need to build a purpose designed hospital, that will support 21st century care and I’m delighted that the proposal has been given the green light.

“Although we want to make sure that people can receive the care and treatment they need at home whenever possible, it’s also important that they are able to access a bed when they need one.

“Some people were worried that we wouldn’t have sufficient beds and we have listened to their concerns.

“As a result we have agreed to provide 12 more beds which will put us in a much stronger position to meet current and future needs.”

Work will now continue to finalise plans for the new hospital. This includes submitting a formal planning application, purchasing the land and appointing a construction partner.

Rachael Maskell MP welcomed the news and the decision to increase the number of proposed beds by 20 per cent on the original proposals.

Ms Maskell said: “Clearly it is welcome that by 2019 York will have a purpose-built and specially designed mental health facility to meet the needs of our city. In particular the increase in the number of beds, from the consultation exercise, has shown that the trust has listened to the responses they received.

“It is vital that Tees, Esk and Wear Valley are able to establish a world-leading centre for mental health in York again through not only building the best facility to aid people’s rehabilitation and recovery from a period of illness, but also have the resources to improve the mental health and wellbeing of the whole community.

“We all know that York’s mental health service needs a lot more investment in the community, in early intervention and therapeutic services, and I will continue to make the case for this. Residents continue to raise serious concerns with me about access to services, waiting lists and on-going support for young people and adults.”

The MP expressed concern that the city centre Bootham Park Hospital could be sold off to developers. The hospital and grounds, which are now managed by NHS Property Services, were donated to the City of York in the eighteenth century. She called on the “public interest in the site” to be a priority in any decision.