First phase of Bristol Royal Infirmary hospital work ends

The four phase redevelopment is expected to be completed in 2014

The first stage in the £80m redevelopment of the Bristol Royal Infirmary has been completed.

The work saw most of the inpatient wards transferred from the Old Building, which dates from 1735, to the King Edward Building.

Phase two will see most services move from Bristol General Hospital to South Bristol Community Hospital in April.

Phase three will see a new ward block built and £1.5m of improvements to the adult emergency department.

Robert Woolley, chief executive of University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, said: "In many ways this is part of the hidden work to redevelop the [British Royal Infirmary] and the big jigsaw puzzle that enables us to continue providing services to patients while redeveloping the site, building a ward block extension and moving services out of the Bristol General Hospital."