The Government has added £25m to Wycombe Hospital's new six-storey building. Endoscopy moves in first; the full exit from the tower block still needs more money.

Wycombe Hospital’s new six-storey building has another £25 million behind it. The money comes from the Department of Health and Social Care. Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust announced it on Thursday 10 September.

It comes on top of the £20 million the trust received from the Government last year. That takes the money announced for the building to £45 million.

The trust calls it “the next stage of funding needed for the building”. It is not the whole bill. The same announcement says the trust is still working with NHS England and national partners “on the wider funding programme needed to deliver the full vision for the site”.

What the building is for

The new block is going up on the main car park off Queen Alexandra Road. It will link by corridors to the hospital’s existing Phase 4 PFI building, according to the planning application.

The trust’s stated purpose is to get core services out of the Wycombe Tower Block, which it has described as “unfit for long-term use”. According to the trust, the new building will house:

  • cardiology
  • stroke services
  • operating theatres
  • a significantly expanded endoscopy service

Endoscopy comes first. The trust says the first phase “will provide a new endoscopy unit”, with planning and design work continuing on the later phases. When MTX, the building contractor, announced its appointment in October 2025, it said cardiology, stroke, theatres and critical care would follow “once further funding has been secured”.

The trust says the new £25 million “will enable the Trust to continue detailed planning and design work for future phases of the redevelopment while construction of the new facility progresses”.

Where the work has got to

The Wycombe Hospital new building, from plans to the extra £25 million Timeline: 3 October 2025, the trust announces plans for a six-storey building; 24 December 2025, Buckinghamshire Council approves it; 26 March 2026, groundbreaking ceremony; 23 June 2026, a separate application for an electrical plant building is validated and is still awaiting a decision; 10 September 2026, an extra £25 million is announced on top of £20 million last year; end of 2026, groundworks due to finish before steelwork goes up. Wycombe Hospital’s new building: how far it has got From the trust’s announcements and Buckinghamshire Council’s planning register 3 Oct 2025 Trust announces plans for a six-storey building 24 Dec 2025 Planning permission granted, PL/25/4237/FA 26 Mar 2026 Groundbreaking ceremony on site 23 Jun 2026 Electrical plant building applied for; still awaiting a decision 10 Sep 2026 Extra £25m announced, on top of £20m last year: £45m in all End of 2026 Groundworks due to finish; steelwork is the next phase No date Funding for the later phases, beyond endoscopy Sources: Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, MTX, Buckinghamshire Council planning register Graphic by Wycombe Today

The trust submitted its plans in October 2025. Buckinghamshire Council validated the application on 13 October and approved it on 24 December 2025. It was a delegated decision by officers, not a committee vote.

The trust held a groundbreaking ceremony on 26 March 2026. It now says groundworks are under way across the whole footprint of the building and should be finished by the end of the year. The next phase is structural steelwork, which will bring the building above ground for the first time.

One date has quietly dropped out. In October 2025 the trust said it hoped to welcome patients and staff to the new Endoscopy Department “by Spring 2027”. MTX said the department was planned to open in 2027. Last week’s announcement gives no opening date for anything.

A second application is still undecided

A separate application, PL/26/04154/FA, was validated on 23 June 2026. It seeks permission for:

  • a building to house electrical plant and equipment
  • changes to an existing retaining wall
  • ducting and other ancillary work
  • temporary alterations to parking on land at Barracks Road

Consultation closed on 15 July. The register gave a determination deadline of 18 August 2026, and it still showed the application as awaiting a decision on 16 September.

Why the tower block matters

The trust’s chief executive, Raghuv Bhasin, said the site “has been in dire need of redevelopment”. The tower block has already needed emergency work. In 2024 the trust applied for a certificate covering the removal of 114 cladding panels from it. The application says they came off “after encountering a significant number of defects which posed health and safety concerns”.

Announcing the money, Mr Bhasin said: “This funding is a strong vote of confidence in our plans to transform healthcare facilities at Wycombe Hospital and create a modern environment for patients, families and colleagues.”

What it means for you

  • Nothing changes for patients yet. Cardiology, stroke and theatre services stay where they are until the building is finished and the later phases are paid for.
  • Endoscopy is the first service due to move. The trust has not given a current opening date, so do not plan around the spring 2027 date it gave last year.
  • Parking on the site is being reshaped. The new building sits on the main car park, and the pending electrical plant application includes temporary changes to parking at Barracks Road. Check the trust’s site information before an appointment.
  • You can follow the pending application on the council’s register under PL/26/04154/FA.

For getting to the hospital by car, see our guide to parking in High Wycombe. Planning decisions across the town are tracked on High Wycombe planning news.

Sources