The planning application for the new children’s hospital have been submitted to An Bord Pleanála at 16:00 today.

This follows the appointment of an internationally acclaimed Design Team last August. Overseen by the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board (NPHDB), the design team led by renowned children’s healthcare architect firm, BDP with Irish partners O’Connell Mahon Architects (OCMA) has carried out intensive work over the past 12 months.  The plans submitted today include those for the new children’s hospital as well as for the two Paediatric OPD and Urgent Care Satellite Centres planned at Tallaght Hospital and Connolly Hospital.

There were over 1,000 hours of engagement and consultation with staff from the existing three children’s hospitals, the Clinical Leads in Paediatric Specialities, with families, young people and children who are former or current users of the service, as well as with residents from the local Dublin 8 area.  This extensive consultation process has led to the development of a world-class building which has been designed to enable staff to deliver the best possible clinical care for children and young people, while also seeking to provide a pleasant environment for staff and families.

[rev_slider AG]

Minister for Health, Mr. Leo Varadkar T.D. said: “Today is an important milestone on the road to building our long-awaited world-class new National Children’s Hospital. The plans are spectacular and the design is iconic. It will be the largest single investment in healthcare in Ireland ever and subject to planning permission work will be well underway in the new year.”

Minister of State, Ms. Kathleen Lynch T.D. said: “There has always been a determined focus by this government to bring this crucially important project to fruition. When constructed, the new Children’s hospital will be the most significant health project of this generation.”

Eilísh Hardiman, Chief Executive of the Children’s Hospital Group said: “Today we are one step closer to having a new world-class children’s hospital in Ireland. The designs for the hospital and satellite centres submitted to An Bord Pleanála are wonderful and have been optimised to ensure that services are delivered in the best possible environment, so that we can ensure the best clinical outcomes for children and young people.  It is another step on the road to bringing services in the three children’s hospitals together under one roof for the first time.”

Speaking about the submission of the planning application, John Pollock, Project Director, NPHDB said: “This has been a challenging and exciting process. To have the opportunity to oversee the design and build of a facility that will positively impact on the lives of children and their families for generations to come is quite overwhelming yet extremely rewarding. Over the last number of months we have listened to the needs of the staff in the hospitals and integrated them with the needs of families and children to deliver a design that works for all.  At all times, we have also taken the views and concerns of local residents into account and believe that we have designed plans for a building of which everyone can be very proud.”

Support from the existing children’s hospitals:
In parallel with the planning process, engagement will continue with the staff of the existing three children’s hospitals as the focus now moves to the interior design and integration of services to be provided in the new children’s hospital and the two Paediatric OPD and Urgent Care Satellite Centres. This follows extensive consultation on design elements with staff across all disciplines over the past 12 months.

Commenting on the process in the lead up to the planning application, David Slevin, CEO of Tallaght Hospital said: “The proposed Model of Care will greatly enhance the care provided to the paediatric community in Dublin in line with international best practice. The Paediatric team at Tallaght Hospital is providing an integral role in developing the integration process with the other two children’s hospitals. We are very excited at Tallaght about the development of the Paediatric OPD and Urgent Care Satellite Centre on our campus here in Tallaght Hospital.”

Mona Baker, CEO, Temple Street Children’s University Hospital said: “The teams at Temple Street have had the opportunity to input and feedback on the NCH designs at every stage of the process. As a result we feel a strong sense of ownership of the new hospital and pride in the final designs that are being submitted for planning permission today. We are now beginning to look beyond the initial design phase towards the programme to integrate the three existing national children’s hospitals. The idea of moving to these really ‘state of the art’ new facilities on a shared campus with St James’s Hospital is now becoming a reality, and it can’t happen soon enough for us.”

Dr Sean Walsh, interim CEO of Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin said: “There will be exceptional opportunities on the campus to partner in the area of clinical research as well as to further develop existing clinical synergies.  We are closer to the vision of developing a medical campus of excellence in Dublin 8 which will benefit everyone for many decades to come.”