Princess Royal to officially open Shropshire Women and Children’s Centre
The new £28 million Shropshire Women and Children’s Centre will be officially opened by The Princess Royal next week.
Her Royal Highness will open the Centre at the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford on Tuesday 27 January after being given a tour of the facility.
The Centre fully opened to patients at the end of September and is now the main inpatient facility for women and children in Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin and mid Wales.
Her Royal Highness will be met at the Centre by Professor Peter Latchford, Chair of The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust and Trust Chief Executive Peter Herring.
She will also be introduced to staff from the Centre including Mrs Cathy Smith, Women and Children’s Care Group Director and Head of Midwifery and Mr Andrew Tapp, Women and Children’s Care Group Medical Director, as well as Mrs Kate Shaw, Programme Manager for the Shropshire Women and Children’s Centre development.
Her Royal Highness will be given a tour of the Centre and will visit areas including the Children’s Oncology and Haematology Department, the Postnatal Ward, the Walker Trust Suite and the Neonatal Ward.
She will then be invited to unveil a plaque marking the official opening of the Centre and sign the guest book.
Mrs Cathy Smith said: “We are really looking forward to welcoming the Princess Royal to officially open our fantastic Women and Children’s Centre.
“This is an excellent facility for women and children in Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin and mid Wales and this visit is timely, coming exactly a week after our Women and Children’s Services were highlighted by the CQC as good.
“Inspectors said the opening of the Centre had a positive impact, particularly on Consultant-led Maternity Services and inpatient Paediatrics and it will be lovely to welcome the Princess Royal and invite her to meet some of our caring and compassionate staff and to show her these wonderful facilities.”
Mr Andrew Tapp added: “Many members of the Trust worked extremely hard in preparing for the move to the new Centre and that hard work has continued since we opened to the public in September.
“The visit by the Princess Royal to open the Centre officially is a wonderful way to acknowledge the work that has gone on so far and look to the future as we begin our first full year in the building.”
This will be the third visit to the Princess Royal Hospital by HRH The Princess Royal following the official opening of the hospital in 1990 and the opening of the Paul Brown Day Hospital in 1998.
