Hinckley: New hospital diagnostic centre backed by council

Artist impressions have been shared of how the new centre could look

Plans to build a new diagnostics hub at a county hospital have taken a "significant step forward".

Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council voted to back designs for a new Community Diagnostics Centre at Hinckley and District Hospital.

Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Integrated Care Board (ICB) said the centre would "bring healthcare closer to home" for residents of Hinckley.

The council approved the plans in principle at a meeting on 13 February.

The £24.6m project will include MRI, CT scanning, X-rays, and physiological measurements on the ground floor, with a new endoscopy suite taking up the first floor including endoscopy procedure and private recovery rooms.

Demolition work started last month on the Mount Road site to make way for the centre, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The new site will be situated at Hinckley and District Hospital

The decision means the new health hub has been approved in principle, but specific details will need to be submitted and approved by the council before work can begin.

However, the latest move means that agreements can be finalised with contractors so that they can begin work on site in the spring, the ICB said.

The University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust is now preparing to recruit staff needed to provide services in the centre when it opens.

Helen Hendley, director of planned care for the ICB, said: "This is a significant step forward in the development and we would like to thank the council for working with us, resulting in the application approval.

"It has been great to see work happening on the site to enable, from early 2025, a fully operational centre providing thousands of tests and appointments for local people."