FAQs 

FAQs - Temporary relocation of St Helier Hospital’s women’s health services

Last updated 23 July 2026

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Is the water at St Helier’s Women’s Health services currently safe?

• Yes – the current mitigations in place to ensure the safety of our water including those recommended by external experts are effective, with monitoring and regular testing taking place. There have not been any clinical infections associated with the water.
• The mitigations do not provide a long-term solution, meaning we cannot guarantee water safety in the long term.

What does this mean for women using the services?

• We are of course sorry for any worry this puts on those being treated in the building, including mums to be, but services are safe in the short term. When we need to temporarily move services, we will talk to local people explain the options.
• Meanwhile women should continue to use the services as they usually would and continue to book with St Helier maternity if this is their local service.

How can you be sure babies weren’t harmed?

• There are current mitigations in place to ensure the safety of our water including those recommended by external experts are effective, with monitoring and regular testing taking place.
• There have not been any clinical infections associated with the water.
• All samples from babies in NICU are closely monitored by our Infection Prevention and Control team and there have been no clinical infections identified.
• We also test the water regularly and the filters are changed regularly as per manufacturers guidance

When will the safety measures you have in place stop being effective?

• The current mitigations in place to ensure the safety of our water including those recommended by external experts are effective, with monitoring and regular testing taking place. They do not however provide a long-term solution
• Significant work is needed to provide a sustainable and permanent solution, as the pre-war pipework will need to be replaced, which is not possible to do while maintaining a good birth experience and safe environment for vulnerable new babies in the building
• We do not want to be forced to act quickly, which is why we are assessing options, and talking to our staff and communities now.

This is clearly a maintenance issue – what is being done for the rest of the estate?

• The wider St Helier estate is reliant on pipework of a similar age to that in E Block. However, the flow of water is better, therefore there is less of a risk of infections on other parts of the estate.

How long will this maintenance take?

• We expect to undertake several months of planning around relocating services, with a goal of starting temporary relocation of services in Spring 2027. We have been advised that it will take approximately two years to complete the work.

Can you guarantee services, including maternity, will move back into the building or remain on site?

• Significant work is needed to fully understand the extent of the work needed to make the building safe for everyone using the services, including mums and babies.
• We need to empty the building to fully evaluate the extent of what is required to make the building safe, as well as the costs involved
• As with a lot of older hospitals, many of the pipes are housed within the structure of the building and we need to thoroughly check whether there is any asbestos present. This would pose unacceptable risks to both patients and colleagues to do this work with mums and babies present.
• This is a temporary move, and our priority is to retain as many services as possible on the St Helier site.

Will staff be made redundant if any of the services need to move?

• There is no intention to make redundancies. Our priority is to continue delivering Women’s Health and neonatal services while retaining the skills, experience and expertise of our workforce
• Workforce planning will need to be undertaken alongside service planning to ensure the right skill mix is in place to deliver safe, high-quality patient care.
• Any proposals affecting specific roles will be communicated and discussed with staff as they are developed. The demand for gynaecology and assisted conception has not changed and a skilled work force will be needed to deliver this activity
• Although the number of births has dropped significantly, we know complexity is greater and mums and babies will need just the same support, wherever they are looked after

Can you guarantee staff will be able to stay at St Helier?

• Our priority at the moment is to review options for relocating services on the St Helier site, if this is not possible, we will need to work with our partners to look at other options
• Individual services all have different needs, and these will need to be accommodated
• If a service cannot remain on the site, we will prioritise supporting staff to move with the service, or if needed, secure another role which suits them
• We are still focusing on trying to keep services at St Helier, so we are not in a position to make guarantees around other locations
• Although the number of births has dropped significantly, we know complexity is greater and mums and babies will need just the same support, wherever they are looked after

When are the trade unions being engaged in this process?

• The ESTH staff side secretary was informed of the changes on Thursday 18th June. We will continue to collaborate with staff side partners to ensure that the best interests of our staff are at the forefront.

How long has this been going on without being identified/when was the last time E Block was tested?

• We carry out regular sampling in line with national guidance, and the bacteria was identified through that process.

Why could you not just replace the filters if they work so well?

• Regular testing shows that the filters are very effective.
• Given expert advice we have received, they are not designed to be a permanent solution.
• Long term use of these point-of-use filters (e.g. fitted to the taps) is not recommended as, although effective as a short term measure, they slow the water flow in the building, which in turn increases the risk of further bacterial build up.

Why is this happening now and why aren’t you waiting for the new hospital?

• Unfortunately, our new hospital has been delayed, and we cannot wait and keep patients and colleagues safe

Why don’t you use the recently allocated £57million given to St Helier’s emergency department to fund this issue?

• The money we recently received for St Helier Emergency Department was specifically designated for our emergency department services

What does this mean for anyone using the services in the block, especially expectant mothers who are currently due to have birth at St Helier’s maternity services?

• Maternity and all women’s health services at St Helier will continue as usual and once decisions have been made on where services will be temporarily relocated to in Spring next year, we will communicate this with patients and our communities well in advance.

Has an equality impact assessment taken place to consider how this will affect the equality of services for the local community who use women’s health services at St Helier?

• This will happen for each option we consider for the temporary relocation of services. As a Trust, we have a key focus on ensuring that our services appropriately supportive for patients and the families of the diverse communities we serve, and we will consider the needs of the local population as a priority when considering development plans.

Why can’t you perform the needed work while services are in place?

• Unfortunately, it is not possible to replace pipework in sections or undertake further invasive assessment while services remain in place, as this would pose unacceptable risks to both patients and colleagues.

Can’t all the services be kept on site in temporary units like the ones at Queen Mary’s Hospital, Roehampton?

• We are looking into the option of using temporary units, as well as other options.

Can women’s health services just be moved to Epsom Hospital temporarily?

• Our first priority will be to explore retaining them elsewhere on the St Helier site. We will look at other sites (like Epsom) if any services cannot be accommodated on the St Helier site.

What are Pseudomonas and Legionella?

• Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) is a type of bacteria that is commonly found in soil and water, and likely to live in wet areas including taps and shower heads, face flannels and sponges. It does not usually cause infections except in people who already have a weakened immune system due to another illness or those with immune systems which have not fully developed.
• Legionella bacteria are commonly found in water systems and can pose a health risk, particularly in the form of Legionnaires’ disease, a form of pneumonia.

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Procurement and planning

Has the statement of requirements for the procurement been agreed yet?

• Until a decision is made on the options and type of work we are to commit too, it is not possible to issue a statement of requirements, procurement are aware of this though and are ready to assist.

How long will procurement for a modular build take?

• Procurement timescales are not fixed and are variable dependant on the value, type of work and technicality of requirements. In some cases, it can be up to 6months to complete the procurement process, but this is very rare, usually we look at 6-7months to design and procure and lead in to start on site.