THE borough council leader has today called for a brand-new hospital in the wake of Hampshire Hospitals being ordered to improve its services.

Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspectors have ordered the Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Basingstoke hospital, Andover War Memorial Hospital and Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester, to improve standards in a number of areas as a matter of urgency.

After an inspection carried out between June and July this year, six main areas where the trust needs to improve to meet the watchdog’s standards have been identified.

It came just a week after the trust confirmed it was to receive £4m from government to cope with added winter pressures.

Today, Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council leader Cllr Clive Sanders said: “A hospital is a large and complex operation. The overall rating of 'requires improvement' is disappointing when there are so many examples of really good performance, in dementia services, end of life care, and world class cancer services.

"Having been a patient there myself very recently I know from first hand the high standard of care and the compassion, kindness and friendliness of staff that makes a visit so much easier. I can only praise the really committed staff who are already tackling the areas that need improvement, but they are doing so in old and dilapidated conditions.

"£4 million extra funding for A&E is welcome, but it is just a sticking plaster. It won’t stop rain coming in through the roof or sewage coming up through the floor.

"The population of Basingstoke and Deane is already growing substantially.

"What the borough needs is a brand-new hospital, fit for the 21st century and able to cope with the pressure of our growing community. It’s time government and the NHS grasped that reality and got on with planning to provide it. The council will do whatever we can to help.”