Disused Hartlepool hospital ward turned into educational simulated hospital setting

The University Hospital of Hartlepool, in Holdforth Road, is transforming a disused ward into a multi-million pound health and social care academy in partnership with the Hartlepool College of Further Education.

This is just one of a number of projects across the region as North-East organisations try to tackle the increasing skills gap after securing a £2.5million grant from the Department for Education.

The North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust deputy chief people’s officer, Gary Wright, said: “In an area with a high level of deprivation and an ageing population it is critical that we recognise the need for a sustainable health and social care workforce.

"Having an academy will help us grow our own talent as well as up-skill staff already working in the sector.

"It will raise ambitions and provide opportunities for the full range of roles no matter where you live.”

The project first came to light in 2018 and now has the financial backing from the Hartlepool Town’s Fund and Local Skills Improvement Fund to create an educational and hands-on experience for students across Hartlepool and the North East.

This facility is set to recruit and re-skill health and social care staff from across the area and use the latest immersive technology to recreate a host of settings and scenarios, from surgery and trauma units to people’s homes where front line staff often have to work.

Manned by college lecturers and staff from the North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust, students can expect to receive hands-on experiences in catheters, blood culture work, heart ECGs, sutures and difficult home settings and care homes.

For those involved, the centre aims to provide level 2 to level 5 qualifications, including apprenticeships and specialist training for up to 80 people at a time in non-clinical and clinical procedures.

The centre is scheduled to be completed by June 2024 and will take its first cohort in September 2024.