Flood-hit property revamped for NHS
A HOUSING association has spent £2m converting evacuated flood damaged properties into a complex for medics.
The new homes for hospital staff are being created to cure an acute staff shortage in the NHS.
They are based in houses in Alexander Gardens in Broughton.
The properties were badly damaged during the worst floods to hit Salford in decades on Boxing Day 2015.
Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust has teamed up with housing association Salix Homes to provide 26 apartments for doctors, nurses and other clinical staff.
It comes after the trust revealed it was struggling to fill 200 vacancies, with the lack of affordable accommodation one of the barriers to attracting people to the area. Ian Moston, group chief finance officer for Salford Royal, said: “Like most organisations in the NHS we have a significant number of vacancies. Our partnership with Salix Homes will provide a major benefit to us in helping to attract people to work and settle in Salford.
“For the majority of us, the ability to live close to where we work is an important part of balancing work and home life.
“Through this partnership with Salix Homes we hope to provide people choosing to come to Salford with good quality, affordable housing whilst they establish themselves in the City on a longterm basis. “We hope this venture with Salix Homes is the first of many areas where we believe we can collaborate to improve the health and wellbeing of people living and working in Salford and the area and can become a template for other communities.” The project was partially funded thanks to a £780,000 grant from the Homes England Shared Ownership and Affordable Homes Programme. Alexander Gardens on Gordon Street has stood empty since the Boxing Day 2015 floods after the former residents were rehoused. Since that night, extensive flood resilience measures have been implemented within the Ian Moston facility and the wider area to help protect against future floods.
Sue Sutton, executive director of operations at Salix Homes, said: “It’s no secret that the country is in the grips of a housing crisis, but it really brings it home when our own local hospital cannot recruit staff due to a severe shortage of suitable and affordable accommodation.
“We believe this project to be among the first of its kind in the country and shows the importance of the health and housing industries working together to help overcome some of the most critical issues facing our sectors.”
Salford Royal intends to let the homes to new recruits for a period of six months in a bid to encourage more medical professionals to come to Salford to work, and reduce reliance on agency staff.
Salford mayor Paul Dennett said: “This unique project is one we are extremely proud of.”