Illustrations showing new facilities at the hospital

MATERNITY and neonatal services at the Whittington Hospital will remain open during several years of construction work outside, the NHS trust said this week.

Whittington Health, which runs the hospital, said it was committed to “protecting the experience of women and pregnant people who choose to give birth at the hospital” during the disruption and that a temporary unit will allow neonatal services to continue “well away from noisy works and construction vibration”.

Almost £35million has been made available for construction of the new facility in Highgate that is set to replace services to be shut down at the Royal Free.

Selina Douglas, chief executive of Whittington Health NHS Trust, said: “There is a huge amount of work ahead of us, and carrying out a redevelopment of this scale within a working hospital will be challenging. But I want to reassure people thinking about having a baby with us that we have carefully planned the programme to minimise disruption to ensure­ that everyone can continue to book their birth with us, with confidence.

“This is the start of a really important period of change for Whittington Hospital, and I am looking forward to seeing the plans we have been developing with our clinical teams begin to become a reality.”

The Start Well project, agreed by health chiefs in 2024, is to significantly improve Whittington maternity services while shutting down the department at the Royal Free.