THE construction of York's new mental health hospital has begun in Haxby Road.

After years of debating and planning a new hospital and its location, work on a 72 bed hospital - a replacement for Bootham Park Hospital - has officially begun.

The new facility will provide two adult, single sex wards and two older people’s wards – one for people with dementia and one for people with mental health conditions such as psychosis, severe depression or anxiety.

Ruth Hill, Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust's (TEWV) chief operating officer, said “After a long time in development, it is great to see building work begin and we are looking forward to seeing the hospital start to take shape.

“We want local people to have access to high quality mental health care and our new hospital will further enhance existing provision for local people. The new hospital will offer cutting edge facilities that support our service user, families and carers with their care needs.”

The new hospital will be a permanent replacement for Bootham Park Hospital, which closed in 2015 following an inspection by the CQC. Some acute patients are currently being cared for in Peppermill Court off Huntington Road.

The Trust bought the land earlier this year for £3million, following planning permission on the site which was granted by City of York Council in December.

Construction firm, Wates Construction, which was appointed by TEWV to deliver the project, has been excavating and preparing the site, which is now ready for building to commence.

It had initially been hoped that patients would move in by 2019 but work on the site is now expected to be finished in 2020.

Wates said it would use the building work to create opportunities for the local community. This is due to include site visits, employment workshops and work experience for schools, colleges and local jobseekers.

Paul Dodsworth, of Wates Construction, said: “Our team has been hard at work preparing the site for the start of construction, ensuring a positive start to what will be an efficient and high quality build for our client. We have been working very closely with the Trust to understand their vision for the new mental health hospital and this collaborative approach will be vital to delivering this state-of-the-art facility."