Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, part of the Northern Care Alliance NHS Group (NCA), has appointed BAM Construction to build a new hospital to support its role as the major trauma centre for Greater Manchester.

Salford-based BAM’s appointment to the £68m major capital project follows a competitive process under the Procure22 Health Framework.

Planning permission for the six-storey James Potter Building, previously referred to as the Acute Receiving Centre, was granted in December 2019.

The new hospital build, on the Salford Royal site, is also part of the Government’s Health Infrastructure Plan, the biggest hospital building programme in a generation, which will deliver a total of 48 hospitals across the country by 2030.

It will provide the trust with major trauma unit and high-acuity surgery facilities in a modern, high-quality building.

Once complete, the specialist facility is set to receive 90% of all major trauma patients in Greater Manchester including those involved in serious road traffic accidents or serious falls. It will also be the hub site for high-risk general surgery across Bolton, Salford and Wigan.

BAM is now on site carrying out enabling works, with a full construction programme start confirmed for 22 February.

Day Architectural has worked on the design with BAM and the trust aims to open the building in summer 2023.

NCA chief executive, Raj Jain, said: “This important facility has been many years in the planning with a number of our local, regional and national partners, and it’s great to now be just weeks away from the official start date of construction.”

Rob Bailey, BAM’s healthcare construction manager, adds: “We have worked extensively on the design and programme with the trust to understand fully what its requirements are and to focus completely on what matters to them – providing a high-quality building in which their patients are cared for and their staff can provide that care.

“We have an integrated capability to deliver facilities, because apart from constructing buildings, we also design them, develop them and manage the facilities inside them.

“This insight and understanding of the built environment empowers our use of digital tools and construction techniques, and it enhances the sustainability and energy efficiency we can bring to make buildings better to use and more efficient to run.”

The 9,800sq m building is set to include a resuscitation area, five emergency theatres, inpatient beds, diagnostic imaging, and a helipad.

Cliff Jones, head of construction procurement for NHS Estates and Facilities, said: “We are delighted this innovative development to provide improved outcomes for patients across Greater Manchester will be delivered via the ProCure22 Framework (P22).

“A key benefit of the framework is early engagement between client and contractor who work in collaboration over the lifecycle of a project to realise the stakeholder requirements and aspirations.

“We look forward to the successful delivery of this unique and dynamic facility and the resulting improvements in healthcare delivery for the community that it will serve.”