Contractor, R G Carter, is delivering the programme of works, which includes the installation of hoardings, land excavation, and an archaeological dig. The work is expected to last until autumn, and will prepare the area for full construction of the main hospital.
Matt Allen, director of New Hospital Construction at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH), said: “The start of 2025 has marked a big milestone for the hospital. We’re absolutely delighted to see excavators on our Cancer Hospital site, removing 18,000 cubic metres of soil from the raised land in readiness for the archaeological work. These groundworks are crucial to reduce archaeological and ground condition risks ahead of full construction, which we look forward to starting next year.”
The project was granted full planning permission in October 2024, and in January this year it was confirmed that the hospital will be in ‘wave one ‘of the Government’s New Hospital Programme. The Chancellor has since called for the hospital to be ‘prioritised’, to help kick-start the UK’s economy and unlock the potential of the Oxford-Cambridge growth corridor.
Dr Hugo Ford, Clinical lead for Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital, and director of Cancer Services at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: “After a decade in the pipeline, this is an exciting moment for us all. The critical first steps have begun for the delivery of such a transformative project, which is not just for Cambridge, but also for the region and the country. Cutting-edge discoveries will come from this building, bringing national and global benefits for cancer medicine.”
The seven-storey, 27,083 m2 building will be built on the corner of Keith Day Road and Robinson Way on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Europe’s largest biomedical campus, next to Addenbrooke’s Hospital, AstraZeneca, and Royal Papworth Hospital. The new cancer hospital has been designed in partnership with current and former cancer patients and carers, based on their own lived experience, as well as staff, to help shape how the facility might look and feel. The architects are NBBJ, while engineers, Aecom, are supporting with principal design, construction, and project management.