AQW 15907/22-27

Ms Kate Nicholl
Alliance Party
South Belfast

Tabled Date: 30/09/2024
Answered On Date: 19/12/2024
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Health to detail any plans his Department has for the future use of the Muckamore Abbey Hospital site.

Answer:

As the owner of the Muckamore Abbey Hospital site, the Belfast Trust is responsible for planning and implementing the closure arrangements. As part of these arrangements the Trust recently published the results of a public consultation on an Equality Impact Assessment in relation to the decommissioning and closure of the Muckamore Abbey Hospital site. The report can be accessed on their website at Consultation Outcomes | Belfast Health & Social Care Trust website (hscni.net).

The Belfast Trust have confirmed to my Department that they do not expect to have any further use for the site when the remaining patients are successfully resettled and the hospital closes. My Department is currently carrying out an assessment to establish whether there is any regional strategic Health and Social Care interest in the site, and the outcome of this will inform decisions about the future use of the site.

My officials will continue to liaise with the Belfast Trust on work to close the hospital, including the outcome of this assessment once completed.