THE first major mental health hospital building to be erected in Surrey for more than 90 years has opened its doors.

Wards relocated across the county during the £30 million project to develop Farnham Road Hospital in Guildford, are being re-opened at Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust’s revamped facility, which is the first large-scale, purpose built mental health building to be unveiled in Surrey since the official opening of West Park Hospital in Epsom in 1924.

The new Farnham Road Hospital provides the latest innovations in modern mental health care in a light and spacious environment that has been carefully designed to promote the well-being of people using the service.

It offers 60 acute psychiatric beds across four adult mental health wards.

Patients have their own en-suite bathrooms and access to a range of therapeutic and recreational areas for art and craft, music, drama and fitness, as well as new touch screen technology to aid therapy and provide entertainment. All wards provide direct access to either an outdoor terrace or garden.

Trust chief executive Fiona Edwards said: “The opening of Farnham Road Hospital is a momentous step for our trust. This state-of-the-art building has been an ambition of ours for many years.

“A great deal of thought has gone into this development to make sure we will be able to provide those who need to be in hospital with the most modern of mental health treatments, delivered in an environment which has been specifically designed with the needs of those with mental ill-health in mind.

“We continue to focus our efforts on early intervention and prevention, working with many partners, including schools, GPs and third sector organisations, to develop community services that help people stay well and out of hospital.

“But it is crucial when someone needs more intensive support in a hospital setting, we can provide them with 21st century care in a 21st-century environment and I am incredibly proud to offer this excellent facility to people across Surrey and North East Hampshire.”

The new Farnham Road Hospital represents a new era of mental health care provision with a greater focus on recovery and preventative measures to help people stay well.

Its three acute mental health wards and one psychiatric intensive care ward will treat people who need to be in hospital. But is also the base for the South West Surrey Home Treatment Team who provide those who are able to stay at home with intensive mental health support so that they do not need to be admitted to hospital. The team also works with those staying in hospital to arrange timely discharge.

The new hospital has two assessment suites where police, ambulance staff and the home treatment team can bring people to a place of safety for an assessment of their mental health. The individual suites both have en-suite toilets and access to outside space.

Surrey and Borders Partnership governor Tracey Hayes said: “I have been incredibly impressed with the level of fine detail the trust has gone into in designing this new hospital.

“It is in a different league to anything else I have seen. It is a wonderfully light and airy building that offers very impressive facilities. I am sure it will improve people’s outcomes and lead to shorter stays in hospital.”