A 185m, 800-bed tower would replace St Mary's 40 buildings in Paddington, opening 2031 to 2035 if funded. The survey closes 31 October; exhibition dates inside.
St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington would be rebuilt as a single tower of around 30 storeys, or 185 metres, under updated plans published by Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.
It would be an 800-bed teaching hospital and major trauma centre. Today the hospital is spread across around 40 buildings. (Imperial College Healthcare, 30 September)
The trust is running its third round of public consultation on the designs. The survey closes on Saturday 31 October.
What the plans show
The new hospital would go on the eastern part of the 10-acre site, on land with no clinical services. The old hospital would keep running while it is built. Services would then move across in one transfer, and the rest of the site would be redeveloped.
The trust’s latest designs include:
- single, en-suite rooms on the wards
- separate arrival and drop-off points for planned, urgent and emergency care
- a sky lobby on the 14th floor, with a sky garden, restaurant and cafe
- a heliport on the roof, for faster transfers of seriously ill patients
- research space built into the clinical areas
The ground around it would change as well. The trust’s exhibition boards show:
- two new public spaces, Mint Square and Canalside Square
- around 7,700 square metres of new public space at ground level
- around 150 metres of new pedestrian streets
- wider routes between Paddington station, Praed Street, the hospital and the canal
- the Grade II listed Clarence Memorial Wing and the western part of the Mint Building kept and restored
The land freed up would nearly double the space for Paddington Life Sciences, the trust’s partnership with drug, device and technology firms around Paddington Basin. The trust cites an independent estimate of 9,000 to 11,000 extra jobs and up to £1.3 billion a year of extra economic activity.
When it could happen
The trust plans to submit a planning application to Westminster City Council for the whole site in spring 2027. It would be a hybrid application. The hospital would be submitted in full detail, and the later phases in outline.
The timetable on the boards puts the new hospital at 2031 to 2035. Both that phase and the first one are marked “subject to funding”.
The rebuild is in the government’s New Hospital Programme. The trust says it is still working with the St Mary’s Redevelopment Funding Taskforce to find other ways to pay for the main building and speed it up.
Why the trust says it cannot wait
Parts of the St Mary’s estate date back to 1845. The trust says its maintenance backlog, the estimated cost of bringing its buildings up to an acceptable condition, is the largest in the whole NHS.
Its chief executive, Professor Julian Redhead, said: “much of our estate is now very old and increasingly difficult to maintain, with building failures an increasingly regular occurrence despite spending millions every year on essential maintenance.”
The main outpatient building has already had to close because of structural problems. In a separate announcement on 28 September, the trust set out interim work at St Mary’s to keep it going for the next decade. It includes a £42 million, three-storey acute care building linking same-day emergency care with A&E and the wards. Work is due to start in summer 2027 and finish in 2028/29.
What people said last time
The second consultation ran in June and July and drew 207 survey responses. Of those who answered the question, 92% supported the overall vision for the site. (Imperial College Healthcare, 18 September)
Respondents also raised concerns about:
- the height and massing of the buildings
- the effect on people living nearby
- traffic and parking
- disruption during construction
The trust says the new designs respond on access, wayfinding and green space.
What it means for you
If you live near the hospital, use it or work around Paddington Basin, this is the stage where the design can still change. The height, around 185 metres, was one of the concerns raised last time.
You can take the survey online until 31 October, or email imperial.redevelopment@nhs.net.
Public exhibitions
| Date | Time | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday 15 October | 1pm to 7pm | Parish hall, St John’s Church, Hyde Park Crescent, W2 2QD |
| Saturday 24 October | 10am to 2pm | Church Street Library, 67 Church Street, NW8 8EU |
| Tuesday 27 October | 1pm to 7pm | The Amadeus, 50 Shirland Road, W9 2JA |
Online webinar: Wednesday 21 October, 6pm to 7pm, on Zoom. Registration is on the consultation site.
Pop-up stalls
- Monday 19 and Wednesday 28 October, 12pm to 4pm, in the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother building at the hospital, Praed Street
- Thursday 22 October, 11am to 3pm, at Church Street Market
Drop-in hub: Unit 25, Paddington Square, 128 to 142 Praed Street, W2 1DL, 12.30pm to 5.30pm. It is open on 6, 8, 12, 16, 22, 23, 26 and 29 October, and on 3, 5, 10, 12, 17, 19, 24 and 26 November. The November dates fall after the survey closes, so if you want your view counted in this round, respond by 31 October.
When the application reaches the council it will go through the normal planning process, with its own chance to comment. Our Westminster planning news page will carry it when it is lodged.
Have your say