Brighton's Royal Sussex helipad still not ready to be used

Bosses at the hospital in Brighton hoped to have repairs finished by the end of September last year but said it would still be “months” from then before the helipad could be used.

Almost seven months later, air ambulances carrying patients are still landing at East Brighton Park around a mile away.

Last Monday, a motorcyclist was airlifted to the park and taken to the hospital by road ambulance after a crash in Eastbourne.

A University Hospitals Sussex spokeswoman said: "The helipad is not yet operational and further structural survey work is being undertaken on the Thomas Kemp Tower.

“We are unable to confirm a new operational date until this work has been completed."

The helipad has not been used since 2019 (Image: UHSussex)

No completion date has been given for this structural survey work that is taking place.

The landing pad on the Thomas Kemp Tower was originally supposed to open in 2019 but it was feared helicopters could destroy the cladding on the building.

The trust told The Argus that this cladding was fixed last September but there was still “minor construction work” to be done on the roof.

Repairs to allow the pad to open began in February last year, some four years after the cladding fault was discovered.

The helipad is part of a £483 million redevelopment of the Royal Sussex (Image: The Argus/Andrew Gardner)

Once work is eventually completed on the helipad, The Civil Aviation Authority still needs to give its approval and then trial landings can begin.

Dr Rob Haigh, chief medical officer for University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, said in March last year: “Being able to bring some of the most unwell and severely injured patients to the centre of the hospital by air ambulance has been a long-term goal but the constrained nature of the site made this impossible until this point.

"As part of the redevelopment of the hospital, we can bring the helideck into use and provide a direct route for patients brought in by air ambulance to reach the services they need more quickly.

“It is hugely welcome news that this work is underway, bringing the opening of the helideck closer.”