How every penny of cash to fix safety problems will be spent at Greater Manchester hospitals
Hospitals in Greater Manchester stand to receive £36.922m to tackle critical safety issues in NHS buildings
Greater Manchester hospitals are being given millions in funding to fix safety problems. The government is handing out £750m to NHS trusts across the country.
The funding is aimed at tackling long-standing infrastructure problems 'caused by years of underinvestment'. Hospitals in Greater Manchester stand to receive £36.922m from the 2025/26 Estates Safety Fund.
The funding will be used for urgent maintenance such as fixing leaking pipes, upgrading faulty electrical systems, improving ventilation, and meeting fire safety requirements - all of which are cited as major causes of disruption to patient care.
MP Paul Waugh MP has welcomed confirmation Rochdale Infirmary and Birch Hill Hospital will be among those to benefit.
"I'm delighted that Rochdale is one of the areas set to benefit from this major NHS investment," he said. "This cash injection for Rochdale Infirmary and Birch Hill Hospital is badly needed - and long overdue.
"Thousands of appointments and operations were cancelled in recent years due to basic maintenance failures like poor wiring, leaking roofs and ventilation breakdowns. These are not just inconveniences - they directly affect patient health and staff wellbeing."
How much money will your hospital get?
This is how the funding is broken down for each part of Greater Manchester:
Bolton NHS Foundation Trust will receive £4.7m for the Royal Bolton Hospital. This money will go to improvements to energy systems and ventilation systems.
Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust will get £6.3m for its mental health care units at Atherleigh Park Hospital, Salford Royal Hospital, Trafford General Hospital, Prestwich Hospital, Wythenshawe Hospital, and the Royal Bolton Hospital.
The planned works will be improvements to electrical systems, security systems and internal building fabric and fixtures, lift upgrades or replacements, anti-ligature works, fire safety works and drainage works.
Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust will receive £6.836m for North Manchester General Hospital, the Oxford Road Campus, and Wythenshawe Hospital.
The money will be for improvements to energy systems, electrical systems and ventilation systems, fire safety works, and lift upgrade or replacement.
Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust will get £10.729m for Fairfield General Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary, Salford Royal, Royal Oldham Hospital.
The money will be for improvements to electrical systems, water systems, energy systems and ventilation systems, fire safety works, drainage works, asbestos works, and roof works.
Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust will receive £1.39m for its mental health care units at Birch Hill Hospital, Buckton Building, and Fairfield General Hospital.
This is for improvements to electrical systems, energy systems, water systems, and fixed and/or plant equipment. It will also be used for anti-ligature works.
Stockport NHS Foundation Trust will get £2.575m for Stepping Hill Hospital. This will be for improvements to internal building fabric and fixtures, water systems, energy systems, heating systems, electrical systems.
The funding will also be used for lift upgrade or replacement, and fire safety works.
Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust will get £1.648m for Tameside General Hospital. The money will be aimed at improvements to electrical systems, and fire safety works.
Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust will get £2.744m for Leigh Infirmary, Royal Albert Edward Infirmary, and Wrightington Hospital.
The money will be for improvements to building management systems, energy systems, heating systems, water systems, and external building fabric.
It will also be spent on fire safety work, roof works, and lift upgrades or replacements.
Will the money be enough?
The funding announcement follows months of disruption to patients and NHS staff because of crumbling infrastructure.
Stepping Hill Hospital has been among the Greater Manchester sites most seriously affected.
Over the course of four months last year, the Stockport hospital saw one of its major outpatient buildings condemned – followed by two 'unexpected and unrelated' ceilings collapsing in its radiology department and its critical care unit.
Those incidents have led to a serious dip in the capacity for outpatient appointments and the hospital's intensive care department being out of action for days.
But hospital chiefs have valued a repairs bill of at least £130m for the rest of the decaying estate.
The hospital trust's chief executive, Karen James, has previously warned that bosses at the site must be 'realistic' about the amount of funding to maintain the current buildings – 'meaning [they] are likely to experience more issues as the result of our ageing buildings'.
Mr Waugh, the Labour MP for Rochdale, added that there is still 'a huge job to do': “Step by step, this Labour government is lifting the NHS off its knees. We’re delivering more appointments, more GPs, and now the investment to make sure our hospitals are safe, modern, and fit for the future.
“There’s still a huge job to do — not least on maternity care — but this is a very welcome and important start.”
The Estates Safety Fund was first outlined in the 2024 Autumn Budget, and is designed to tackle the worst infrastructure issues across NHS sites in England. It includes investment in maternity, mental health and community settings as well as acute hospitals.