New £321k helipad opens at district hospital

A £321,000 helipad has opened at Salisbury District Hospital.

The facility was funded by the HELP Appeal, a charity dedicated to funding hospital helipads.

Salisbury District Hospital has around 60 patients arriving via helicopter each year and said it "urgently" needed the replacement and is "indebted" to the charity.

It has opened after successful test flights, with Wiltshire Air Ambulance pilots saying they can now land at night as the helipad complies with the latest regulations.

The new helipad has been involved in successful test flights

The helipad is bigger than the old one, has new lighting, signage and a weather station for pilots to get accurate information.

One of Wiltshire Air Ambulance's pilots, Captain Simon Gough MBE said it will make "an amazing difference to us".

He added: "Fundamentally it means we can come in here at night, which we haven't been able to do before."

Cpt Gough explained the new lighting will be a big help, as the helicopter crew can control them themselves from a distance of two or three miles away and it means they'll be able to move patients more safely on the ground too.

Wiltshire Air Ambulance pilot, Captain Simon Gough MBE, said it will make "an amazing difference"

Staff from the hospital, Wiltshire Air Ambulance and the HELP Appeal were at the opening, which was also attended by a crew in the Bell 429 helicopter.

Ian Robinson, Head of Facilities at Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust, and Chair of the Helipad Working Group, said: "I'm really proud. We've had a helipad for decades, but it was essentially a bit of concrete.

"What we've done here is build a hospital landing site that is fully compliant. This is the best that you would see," he added.

The opening of the new helipad means that air ambulance crews can use it for training and other tasks such as picking up staff.

The funder, the HELP Appeal, is the only charity in the country which aims to increase the number of onsite hospital helipads at major trauma centres and A&E hospitals.

It offers non-repayable grants to help fund new helipads or upgrade existing ones.

The opening was attended by staff from the hospital, air ambulance and HELP appeal