The Board of NHS Lanarkshire met today (16 December) and approved the recommendation of Wester Moffat as the preferred site option for the new University Hospital Monklands.

The Board’s recommendation will now be put forward to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport, Jeane Freeman MSP, who will make a final decision.

Three site options for the Monklands Replacement Project (MRP) were considered at the Board meeting (in alphabetical order): Gartcosh; Glenmavis; Wester Moffat.

Neena Mahal, Chair of the Board of NHS Lanarkshire, said: “The Board’s recommendation that Wester Moffat is the preferred site for the new, state-of-the-art University Hospital Monklands marks a significant milestone in our exciting project to create a world-class hospital to serve the communities of Lanarkshire over the coming decades.

“I would like to thank the public and our staff for their extensive participation during the engagement process on the Monklands Replacement Project.

“The feedback we received on the three site options proved invaluable in helping Board members to give thorough consideration to the issues of key interest to members of the community, such as travel and transport, site contamination, cross-boundary flow of patients and the socio-economic impact of relocating the hospital.

“I would also like to acknowledge the hard work of the Monklands Replacement Project team, who provided the Board with the comprehensive information which formed the basis of our deliberations.

“The Board’s recommendation, which is not a final decision, will now be considered by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport.”

Now published on the MRP webpage – www.monklands.scot.nhs.uk:

• MRP engagement report
• Updated Fairer Scotland Duty Assessment (covering the socio-economic impact of the hospital relocation)

For the full list of documents considered at the NHS Lanarkshire Board meeting, see the Board papers section of the NHS Lanarkshire website.

A decision on a preferred site is a necessary step in the preparation of the business case for the new hospital build.