Overdale Hospital has been completely flattened to make room for Jersey's new acute hospital.

The new facility will be the first major building in the New Healthcare Facilities Programme, which islanders have been waiting more than a decade for.

Health Minister Tom Binet says he is very pleased that another important milestone has been reached:

"Islanders have been long overdue modern healthcare facilities, and while the road to get to this stage has been long, we are now witnessing real, tangible progress."

Jersey Demolition Contractors have been working on reducing Overdale to rubble since December 2023.

The first and second demolition phases only started once the patients at Overdale were moved to the Enid Quenault Health and Wellbeing Centre in the summer of 2023.

Current Overdale siteDesigns for the new acute hospital

The third phase of demolition commenced once patients on the Samarès Ward relocated to St Ewold’s Residential and Care Home in May 2024.

The government says contractors removed 20 buildings on the site and have:

• Crushed around 12,000 cubic metres of rubble, which will be reused in the building of the new hospital,
• Recycled more than 4,000 cubic metres of materials from the site,
• Donated more than £13,000 worth of material from Overdale, including timber,
• And, committed 200 hours of volunteering towards improving the site's biodiversity by planting hedgerows, damaged by Storm Ciaran.

Infrastructure Minister Connétable Andy Jehan commented:

"To facilitate demolition, I am very pleased that alternative and improved facilities for rehabilitation services at the Parish of St Helier’s St Ewold’s Residential Home were identified.

"Islanders will remember that I fought hard for the facilities in Westmount Centre to be re-opened, and the new facility at St Ewold’s represented a good alternative."

Overdale in December 2023

Next on the agenda is for the site to get the estimated £710 million in funding approved by the States Assembly in the upcoming Budget debate.

The final amount for Phase 1 will be decided in the sitting which is taking place starting from 25 November 2024.

If that is agreed, and planning permission is received, construction on the new hospital is expected to start in 2025, with the build completed by the end of 2028.

Earlier this month, the Environment Minister confirmed the application would be determined by the usual process and there would not be a public inquiry.

READ: No public inquiry for Overdale hospital planning application

Deputy Binet says he is confident States Members will make the right decision by approving the budget for Phase 1 and that the Planning Committee will grant the project approval.

"With their support, we can finally look forward to a ‘spade in the ground’ on this long-awaited project next year."

Constable Jehan says he is looking forward to construction starting next year.

"The removal of the former buildings has cleared the way for a new chapter of healthcare facilities to be built at Overdale."

Current Overdale siteOverdale before demolition