Bid race starts for up £95m repairs to PFI hospital

Rosebery Park Hospital where an extensive programme of defects rectification work is requiredThe race has started for the job to repair serious defects at a mental health hospital built under PFI just over a decade ago.Roseberry Park Hospital in Middlesbrough opened in 2011 but has had problems with its roof, plumbing and fire safety system.Now Tees, Esk and Wear Valley NHS Trust, which won a battle to terminate its contract with the original PFI provider, is looking for a firm to carry out an extensive programme of defect rectification works.Planned works to blocks 1 and 9 at the site are expected to cost around £15m.This may balloon to £95m should the contract scope subsequently be extended beyond these blocks to subsequent phases covering Blocks 2, 3,4, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15.The original PFI contract was secured by special purpose vehicle, Three Valleys Healthcare Limited, which went has since completion gone into administration.Laing O’Rourke was building contractor for the 311-bed hospital, while Carillion was earmarked as the facility management company.The hospital was handed over in 2010. By 2011 the hospital had problems with timber roof structures being damaged and decayed from condensation, while in 2018 the hospital was found to have extensive fire safety defects.The project sparked a flurry of legal actions through the supply chain with the NHS Trust bringing a claim against TVH for more than £125m, which in turn brought a claim against Laing O’Rourke.Laing O’Rourke agreed to pay £18m in compensation in July 2021, while it also spent £5m remediating the hospital’s timber roofs.Laing O’Rorke now has ongoing legal action against architect Medical Architecture and timber supplier Deeside Timberframe.Selection Questionnaires should be returned by 15 July by email.