Northwick Park Hospital’s neonatal unit is undergoing a major year-long refurbishment, with work taking place while the department continues to care for newborn babies.
The project will create a lighter and more spacious environment for babies, parents and hospital staff, more than two decades after the unit was last significantly refurbished.
The existing neonatal unit dates back to a major refurbishment in 2002 and is now being redesigned to make better use of the space available and bring the facilities more closely in line with modern standards.
Work taking place while neonatal unit remains open
The project involves repurposing existing rooms and corridors, rather than simply expanding into new space.
One of the challenges is carrying out the work while the neonatal service continues to operate, meaning the refurbishment is being completed in phases to limit disruption.
Krzysztof Zieba, Consultant Neonatal Paediatrician, said: “It’s a challenge because we have to make better use of the existing space, but careful planning is allowing us to complete each phase of the works with the minimum of disruption.”
The unit provides specialist care for some of the hospital’s smallest and most vulnerable patients.
Northwick Park has a Level 2 neonatal unit, which cares for babies born from 27 weeks of pregnancy onwards, as well as newborns who are premature, have breathing difficulties or require additional care because of complications during pregnancy.
According to London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust, the unit currently has eight intensive therapy or high-dependency cots, 16 special care cots and three transitional care support cots.
Other improvements at Northwick Park
The neonatal refurbishment follows a number of other upgrades to facilities at Northwick Park in recent years.
Changes to maternity services have included a refurbished birth centre with five birthing rooms, including birthing pools and double beds, as well as a remodelled maternity triage area providing five private consulting rooms.
Elsewhere, the St Mark’s Endoscopy Unit and Bowel Cancer Screening Centre reopened in April 2025 following a multi-million-pound refurbishment. The project provided two additional clinic rooms at the screening centre, a dedicated colonoscopy room, a new recovery area and improved facilities for patients.
Further improvement work is also under way on other parts on the site. Plans were announced earlier this year to refurbish the hospital’s faith space, which dates from 1979, into a larger and more accessible multifaith centre following consultation with patients, staff and local communities.
The hospital is also seeking a much larger improvement to its critical care facilities. Proposals have been put forward for a purpose-built 36-bed intensive care unit, with the potential for another 24 critical care beds and a dedicated CT scanner.
For the neonatal team, however, the immediate focus is completing the year-long refurbishment while continuing to provide specialist care throughout the works.
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