A trio of MPs have joined forces to call for an all new hospital to be built near Bracknell.

In 2020, the government has announced that 40 new hospitals would be built by 2030, with eight existing hospitals being invited to bid for funding for modernisation projects.

Now James Sunderland, the Conservative MP for Bracknell has joined a call for a new hospital to be built at Frimley Park in Camberley.

Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust has submitted a £1.26 billion bid to build a new Frimley Park hospital.

While Mr Sunderland noted that the hospital is ‘fantastic’ and the staff are ‘superb’, he’s argued  the hospital was built in the 1970s with concrete that is deteriorating and needs to be replaced.

But instead of replacing the building materials piecemeal, the Trust wants to build a new hospital at an alternative site closeby.

Advocating for a new hospital, Mr Sunderland has co-written a letter to  Steve Barclay MP, the Secretary of State for Health & Social Care with fellow Conservatives Michael Gove, the MP for Surrey Heath, and Leo Docherty, the MP for Aldershot.

It calls on Mr Barclay, also the Conservative MP for North East Cambridgeshire to examine the merits of the Trust’s bid and seek its delivery.

The letter states: “We are writing to offer our wholehearted support for Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust’s bid for the New Hospital Programme for a £1.26 billion investment to build a new Frimley Park Hospital.

“As you are no doubt aware, two thirds of the Frimley Park Hospital site is affected by Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC).

“Much is showing extensive and continued deterioration, and there are significant difficulties replacing it in situ.

“Therefore, the Trust’s preferred way forward is to build a new hospital on a new site nearby.

“This is the most cost-efficient and clinically sound option and will ensure that there is vital continuity of services for local residents.

“A new site is likely to take approximately five to seven years to secure, design and build, meaning that news on the Trust’s bid is needed imminently to avoid any interruption to services.

“Frimley Park is rated as an Outstanding local hospital by the Care Quality Commission, much-loved by our community and time and time again we hear stories from our constituents about the work of its dedicated staff and the amazing care they provide.

“As such. we are extremely keen that the Trust receives this vital investment to enable it to continue as one of the best hospitals in the country.

“As the Hospital’s local MPs, we therefore urge you to examine the merits of the Trust’s bid for a new Frimley Park Hospital as swiftly as possible, so we can safeguard these crucial healthcare services for generations to come.

“We look forward to hearing from you.”

Mr Sunderland told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that Mr Barclay has acknowledged the letter and will be meeting the three MPs to discuss it in the near future.