King's Lynn hospital paid PR firm £900k in rebuild campaign

Staff at the QEH celebrated in May when the government confirmed it had been added to the New Hospital Programme

A hospital has admitted it spent more than £900,000 on a public relations firm while campaigning for a new building.

The Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) in King's Lynn, Norfolk, initially said it paid the company £580,000 in 2022-23, but the total figure was much more.

In May, the government confirmed the QEH would be rebuilt.

The chief executive of the NHS trust that runs the hospital said the firm helped deliver a "trust-wide strategy".

Crumbling concrete

Constructed out of the unsafe Raac material (reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete), the hospital is held up by more than 4,000 props.

Initially, the QEH told the BBC it paid Hood & Woolf £580,000 for the work, but following further questions, it revealed the actual amount was £905,599 spent between August 2021 and January 2023.

The company was also paid more than £800,000 by the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust as it worked to improve its rating by inspectors.

Parts of the QEH, including wards, are supported by wooden and metal props

Tracey Tansley, from the union Unison, which represents many staff at the QEH, said it was "a sad indictment of the government that the trust felt it had to spend almost a million pounds for ministers to realise that the roof was falling in".

The North West Norfolk Conservative MP James Wild said he had raised his concerns with the hospital chairman and chief executive.

He added: "I wouldn't expect them to spend the same in the future."

The hospital paid Hood & Woolf more than £900k, including £117k in September 2022

Alice Webster, the chief executive of the QEH, said the work by Hood & Woolf included helping "to deliver a trust-wide strategy" and "a website for the new hospital campaign".

"This activity could not be fulfilled by the limited trust communications and engagement team at the time due to senior vacancies and sickness," said Ms Webster.

Steph Hood, director of Hood & Woolf, said the firm supported leadership teams and "organised and facilitated public and staff events" during its contract.

"We helped to secure more than £860m of national investment for a new hospital in King's Lynn," she added.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "Trusts are responsible for managing their budgets but we expect them to prioritise frontline care and demonstrate value for money for taxpayers in all areas."