Brighton Royal Sussex County Hospital gets final approval for £484.7m rebuild

Inspectors found the hospital A&E unit was not well-managed

A hospital whose A&E was criticised by care inspectors has been given final approval for a £484.7m rebuild.

The Royal Sussex County Hospital welcomed the news, which will allow some of the oldest buildings in the NHS to be replaced.

The safety and management of the Brighton hospital's A&E unit were rated "inadequate" by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) on Friday.

Chief nurse Sherree Fagge said the changes would be dramatic.

"The first new building will open in late 2019," she said.

"On that day I think few people will recognise it as the same hospital they have visited in the past."

'Before Florence Nightingale'

The government approved the full business case for the redevelopment last week.

The full rebuilding programme will take nine years and be split into three stages but all clinical services will remain on site throughout.

Ms Fagge said all the buildings along the front of the hospital would be replaced, including some in use 25 years before Florence Nightingale began nursing in the 1840s.

The hospital redevelopment will take place over nine years and be done in three stages

Brighton's A&E unit was rated the second worst in England in July, with 19.9% of people waiting more than four hours.

Richard Beard, spokesman for Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals, said the redevelopment would ease pressure on A&E.

Conservative MP for Brighton and Kemptown, Simon Kirby, said receiving final approval was great news for the city.

"This redevelopment will enable the hospital to provide the very best facilities that the patients and staff deserve," he said.