£450m redevelopment of Leeds hospital site takes another step forward
Leeds Innovation District has taken another step forward with an outline planning application submitted for the latest proposed development of the site.
The application, submitted by Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, is part of an estimated £450m investment in the redevelopment of the Leeds General Infirmary (LGI) site to provide a new adults’ hospital – with added theatres and critical care – and a brand-new home for Leeds Children’s Hospital.
The development will see the Trust to expand its services, providing patients with care based on the latest technologies, treatments and research.
The scheme is part of ambitious plans to create a world-class hub for research, innovation and entrepreneurialism in sectors such as health and life sciences, creative and digital, data, engineering, advanced infrastructure and urban services.
As part of the project work has already started on the Bragg Centre for Physical Sciences and Engineering.
The project will release five hectares of land for development and will be one of the cornerstones of the Innovation District for commercial investment, which will bring together some of the city’s most creative and innovative anchor institutions and businesses.
Judith Blake, leader of Leeds City Council, said: “Together with our universities and the teaching hospitals NHS Trust, we are creating a focal point for innovation in the city.
“Alongside development opportunities, we are encouraging collaboration between businesses, entrepreneurs, universities, health professionals and civic leaders, to enable business and job creation and growth, and promote inward investment.
“This latest potential development for the Leeds General Infirmary site is a perfect example of how we are looking for opportunities to further enhance the city’s reputation at the forefront of health innovation and research.”
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust chair Linda Pollard added: “The potential of this development is enormous, not only for the future of health services for patients in Leeds and beyond, but also for skills and investment it will bring to the city and the vital role it will play in establishing the Innovation District.”
The Innovation District, where science meets creative arts and healthcare, has already benefited from a series of significant developments, primarily within healthcare and academia.
Recently delivered or on-site investment includes Leeds Beckett University’s £80m creative arts building, an expansion of Leeds Arts University, and the University of Leeds has invested £40m in the new Nexus innovation hub.
Professor Peter Slee, Vice Chancellor of Leeds Beckett University and Leeds Innovation District board member, said: “Supporting innovation is vital to the future success of the Leeds region.
“Our £80 million investment in a new creative arts building brings world-leading, industry-quality teaching and learning facilities in film, television, music, fashion, dance, drama and performance to the heart of the city’s Innovation District.”
“Each year, we educate and train 1,800 students in the creative arts. They graduate to provide a pipeline of diverse and multi-skilled talent for a sector worth more than £100 billion to the UK economy.”
