Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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118. To ask the Minister for Health the status of the national children’s hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37594/21]

Marc MacSharry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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133. To ask the Minister for Health if he will report on the construction of the new children’s hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37732/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 118 and 133 together.

The New Children’s Hospital Project, comprising the main hospital at St James’s campus in Dublin, and two paediatric outpatient and urgent care centres at Connolly and Tallaght hospitals, is a Government priority.

The National Paediatric Hospital Development Board (NPHDB) has the statutory responsibility and resources to plan, design, build, furnish and equip the new children’s hospital.

The main hospital was scheduled to be substantially completed by August 2022 and, following a commissioning process of 9-10 months, to open in 2023.  This contractual completion date has been revised to October 2022 as the contractor was granted an extension of time by the Employer’s Representative, in line with the contract, due to the impact of Covid-19 and the closure of the site in March 2020.  

The NPHDB has now advised my Department that BAM’s contractually compliant programme, approved by the Employer’s Representative in March 2021, forecasts a substantial completion date of December 2023.  Therefore, if BAM can meet its own schedule, the new hospital could open in 2024, after the necessary commissioning period.

The NPHDB and BAM are currently engaged in a process to allow the forecasted December 2023 completion date to be met.  There remain external risks beyond the control of the Development Board and the contractor to that timeline, arising from Brexit, the global pandemic, global supply chain difficulties and shortages of construction raw materials. However, BAM, as a Tier 1 construction company, has global reach into supply chains and is doing its best to mitigate those risks.

Despite delays and Covid-19 restrictions, significant progress is being made on the site at St James’s and the new children’s hospital building is taking shape.  Over 90% of all concrete has been placed, with the concrete frame now complete. In March, a key milestone was reached when the last section of the seventh-storey was poured with concrete, meaning that the building has now topped out.  The infill concrete slabs over the steelwork frame, closing in the concourse, will be complete by August 2021.

Glazing and façade works are continuing such that the distinctive shape of the building is becoming clear. It is anticipated that the majority of the building will be weathertight by the autumn. The fit out of certain internal areas has begun, with discernible rooms and areas taking shape. The primary Mechanical and Electrical Plant comprising boilers; combined heat and power, generators, transformers, main distribution boards and medical gases are well progressed with the focus now on primary and secondary distribution around the building.

A major milestone was reached in July 2019, when the Urgent Care Centre at the Connolly Hospital campus opened, providing a new model of ambulatory care for children. The opening of the second of the three new campuses, at Tallaght Hospital later this year, will be another important milestone in the NCH programme and in the delivery of children’s health services. 

Construction work on the 4,600m2 facility is nearing an end, with a substantial completion date scheduled for September 2021. It will then be handed over to Children’s Health Ireland to open for services after an 8-week period of operational commissioning and equipping.