A MAJOR hospital redevelopment has passed another milestone.

Work on the first stage of the ambitious £486 million project for the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton has been progressing steadily over the past six months.

It has already led to teams and services based at the Jubilee and Latilla buildings being moved and placed in temporary, purpose-built sites in the hospital grounds.

Now the radiopharmacy team, based in the nuclear medicine building, has also been relocated, giving developers a chance to fully clear the area and start construction work.

The first stage of the development will create an 11 storey building which will also form the new main entrance to the hospital.

The buildings at the back of the construction area, which takes up most of the south east quarter of the hospital site, have already been removed and earthworks started.

The buildings at the front, which are old and no longer suitable for 21st century care, will be pulled down to make more room.

Hundreds of members of staff, and dozens of services, have been moved around the hospital site as part of the preparation work.

Project director Duane Passman said: “This staggered approach came about because of one straightforward principle.

“Patient services would be moved just once to a decant location on the hospital site.

“Moreover, the decant location would offer a better quality of accommodation than the service had before.

“There’s still plenty of work to be done before stage one opens in 2020 but now, perhaps for the first time, the redevelopment is a reality that is visible to all.”

The building’s structure, much of which is being pre-constructed off site, will take approximately 18 months to complete.

The rest of the time will be used to fit it out.