Hambleton District Council has today confirmed that it is going ahead with the purchase of the former Lambert Memorial Hospital in Thirsk. It has agreed the terms of agreement with NHS Property Services, which owns the Chapel Street site. The authority will now begin a public consultation with local people to decide how it should be used in the future and ensure it is kept for community use.
I am absolutely delighted with this news. This is exactly what Hambleton Council Leader, Mark Robson and I have been working towards. We were determined to find a way to ensure that the building is kept for the community as it was intended when it was bequeathed to the people of Thirsk. I am also grateful to the former Secretary of State, Jeremy Hunt and his successor, Matt Hancock, whose support I sought for our campaign.
Cllr Robson also welcomed the news “The Lambert Memorial Hospital closed its doors to patients three years ago and we have been pushing hard to confirm its sale to us for the last year, It has been a long process but we can now start to look at how we can bring the building back to life – and that will include asking local people what they want to see it used for.”
David Elstob, principal transaction manager at NHS Property Services, added: “We are pleased to have agreed a deal with Hambleton District Council, which will lead to vital capital receipts being reinvested into a transformed NHS estate that supports the health service in delivering excellent patient care.”
The council is now waiting for legal work to be completed to seal the sale.