Vital Services (VS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust (BWC), was once again honoured to participate 
in the HOPE (Hospitals of the European Union) 
Exchange Programme this year, for the second year running. We welcomed two professionals for a four-
week placement during May. The HOPE Programme is a unique

Many operators and maintainers of standby diesel generator are probably all too familiar with the problem of engine ‘slobber’, or ‘wet stacking’. This problem is typically the result of the generator engine running for long periods at low levels of load — the outcome of which is a build-up of unburned fuel in the exhaust

High-quality healthcare facilities underpin safe care, staff wellbeing, and operational resilience. Yet a large share of the NHS estate is ageing, and the maintenance backlog has climbed to £13.8 bn across England.1 The post-Grenfell regulatory landscape has intensified compliance requirements, demanding more rigorous documentation, reporting, and assurance processes from already stretched teams. Workforce pressures compound

Healthcare facilities face unique challenges when compared with other types of facility, as they need consistent high availability of assets and systems so that patient care is never compromised. At the same time, the NHS faces a maintenance backlog of £11.6 bn, a figure which is currently growing. This puts strain onto teams as they

Last year, Raybloc (X-Ray Protection), which is based in Willenhall in the West Midlands, marked the passing of
25 years since its foundation. Established in 1999, the family-owned business is now run by the third generation that still strives towards the vision of being the leading innovator in changing the face of radiation shielding worldwide. The

Estates and facilities managers in healthcare are under constant pressure to do more with less, but as the way healthcare staff work continues to evolve, so too must the environments that support them. Flexible working models — such as hybrid, compressed hours, and job sharing — are now formally recognised across the public sector. While

A Fire Dampers guidance document (NAAD22) was published in 2022, clarifying the responsibilities of building owners and occupiers in relation to fire dampers in their buildings, in addition to those of their HVAC system suppliers. There is evidence to suggest, however, that of an estimated 100 million fire dampers in UK buildings, many are still

The NHS is on a mission to become the world’s first Net Zero national health service. As one of the UK’s largest energy consumers, its vast estate — including hospitals, clinics, and healthcare facilities — accounts for around
15 per cent of total public sector emissions.1 Due to the need to maintain safe and comfortable environments

Last November, the controversial Darzi Report,1 in its recommendations for the future of the NHS, stated that, ‘Too great a share [of NHS funding] is being spent in hospitals, too little in the community’, and emphasised the importance of locating healthcare facilities on the high street — closer to where people live, work, and shop.

The initiative to establish more essential medical services close to local communities, enhancing accessibility and reducing the burden on hospitals is certainly a positive step towards a more integrated healthcare system. One of the key challenges that needs to be addressed is infection control. Healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs) remain a significant concern in all medical settings,

As an estates professional, do you have a list of priority jobs and actions? So, arriving in the office on Monday morning with every intention of dealing with them in order, what happens? Stuff happens — and by the end of the day, the list is untouched, while plenty of other tasks have taken its

This transformation is no small feat. It demands long-term thinking, strategic planning, and a willingness to learn from sectors that have already made significant strides in energy efficiency and the planning of decarbonisation. One such sector is heavy industry, where energy-intensive operations have driven innovation in sustainability for decades. There are lessons health estates can

I’ve had a front-row seat to how digital innovation is reshaping healthcare estates management. Monklands is set to be the UK’s first digital-first hospital, and we are pioneering the use of digital twin technology to revolutionise how the facility is planned, built and operated. Our role in the project has given us unique insights into

The NHS estate is one of the largest and most complex public sector property portfolios in Europe, comprising over 24,000 assets across more than 1,200 sites. Many of these facilities are ageing, with 15 per cent of buildings in England constructed before the NHS was founded in 1948. The estate now has a critical maintenance

The design of healthcare facilities is undergoing a radical transformation. Our work on the new Cancer Research Hospital offers valuable insights into how we can design future medical spaces to be more collaborative and sustainable, in partnership with patients and other stakeholders. The vision for the specialist hospital focuses on ‘changing the story of cancer’