Town and parish councils give nearly £20,000 to Telford hospital 'DIY SOS' project
Nearly £20,000 has been donated by town and parish councils in Telford and Wrekin to a project aiming to attract doctors to work at Telford's A&E.
The funding will support the refurbishment of three houses in the grounds of Princess Royal Hospital, which will be provided as free accommodation for junior and middle grade doctors.
The hospital’s A&E faces overnight closure from next month due to a lack of staff.
Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (Sath), which runs the hospital, says that can be avoided in the 'short-term' if it gets the A&E staff it needs.
A £5,000 donation has come from Hadley & Leegomery Parish Council, Great Dawley Town Council has also given £5,000 and Wellington Town Council gave £4,800.
Wrockwardine Wood and Trench Parish Council donated £2,500 and Newport Town Council has given £2,500.
Councillor Peter Scott, Mayor of Newport, said: "Newport Town Council is very pleased and proud to be able to support such a worthy cause.
"We have supported the PRH from day one and will continue to do so in the future.”
Malcolm Randle, Mayor of Great Dawley Town Council, added: "We are behind the project 100 per cent.
"We stand by what we believe in, which is the doctors coming here.
Volunteers
"We believe they should be here. We will support it to the hilt.”
Work on the houses began last week, when volunteers met to strip out the interiors and tidy up their overgrown gardens.
The project launched following an appeal to businesses from Telford & Wrekin Council leader Shaun Davies.
He called on business owners to offer services and materials to fix up the buildings, prompting builders, plasterers and electricians to come forward.
He said: “It’s great to see this work under way and already there is a noticeable difference.
"When I speak to staff at the hospital they are increasingly excited, especially now that they can see something happening on the ground.”
The planned night-time closure of A&E at PRH is due to come into force on December 5, from 10pm to 8am, unless additional staff can be found.
The trust says it could remain open at night in the ‘short-term’ if it receives an ‘absolute minimum’ of seven middle grade doctors, as well as at least 15 more registered A&E nurses.
Health bosses say any closure would be reviewed and the situation could be reversed when the right levels of staffing are achieved.
Sath also says it is working to try and avoid any closure, but patient safety is the priority.
