Peterborough City Hospital to use beds at nursing home this winter

Peterborough City Hospital will use more than 40 beds at a nursing home to help relieve pressures this winter.

The hospital, like many across the country, is facing a busy winter, and has looked for ways to create new beds for patients at the site.

A report from Caroline Walker, Chief Executive Officer of the North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust – which runs the Peterborough hospital as well as Hinchingbrooke and Stamford and Rutland sites – said: “In creating extra capacity for patients, we have been working with Ashlynn Grange nursing home, adjacent to the Peterborough City Hospital site, which will provide use of up to 42 community beds by the end of 2022. Our estates team is working on a plan to install a new 20-bed modular ward facility on the PCH site to be in use by the end of March 2023, and an extra 11 beds have been realised from conversion works taking place at PCH this month.”

Angus Maitland, Interim Chief Operating Officer for North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust, added: “Our Trust is pleased to be working with our partners at Ashlynn Grange Care Home and we are grateful for their support.

“The facilities provided by Ashlynn Grange are very helpful in supporting the care of patients who no longer need acute medical care, but are on a reablement pathway.”

A spokesperson for Ashlynn Grange Care Home said: “Athena Care homes has recently completed work on a major upgrade to one of the 41-bed communities at the Ashlynn Grange Care Home in Peterborough.

“This has given us extra capacity within our home, and we are pleased to be working in partnership with the North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust to support them at a time when the NHS is under great pressure.

“They will have full access to 42 beds at our home, for patients who are ready to be discharged but still require some rehabilitation before returning home. Beds may also be used by patients who are awaiting a care package and are therefore unable to return to their home.”

The arrangement is currently scheduled to last until March and has been made possible by the additional winter funding provided nationally.