Work begins on new Health and Social Care Academy

Construction is under way on the site at the University Hospital of Hartlepool

Building work has begun on a new Health and Social Care Academy in Hartlepool.

It has been chosen as one of five projects forming Hartlepool Borough Council's £25m Town Deal, securing £1.25m to support its development.

It will form part of North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust’s Faculty of Leadership, Learning and Improvement and will feature a four-bed training bay, an ICT suite and classrooms.

Construction of the academy, at the University Hospital of Hartlepool, is due to end this summer.

It is hoped the academy will help kick-start the careers of Hartlepool’s next generation of health and social care professionals.

Speaking at an event to mark the start of the works, the trust's managing director Neil Atkinson said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for the trust to complement the services we operate out of Hartlepool and to ensure we have the right pipeline of qualified staff working across the health and social care system in the future.”

Councillor Mike Young, leader of Hartlepool Borough Council, said: “Helping people to develop the skills needed to secure high-quality jobs is a key aim of Hartlepool Town Deal, and this project represents a major investment in the future of our town, its residents and our local hospital.”