THE CLOSURE of an accident and emergency waiting room has been extended while floor repairs continue.

Repairs to the flooring at Worcestershire Royal Hospital's A&E department are now set to be completed in a couple of weeks.

The waiting room at the new £35m A&E closed in September after problems were identified with parts of the floor's finish while a temporary waiting room was opened in another part of the building.

Stephen Collman, managing director at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "The areas of flooring in the main emergency department, waiting area and triage service requiring remedial works has remained the same, but some isolated areas have required further work than originally anticipated.

"We expect this work to be completed in the next couple of weeks.

"Our priority while this work is being carried out is to make sure that the emergency department stays open and functions safely for all our patients and staff."

The A&E department, which costs £35 million to develop, only opened in October 2023 while Princes Anne was part of an official opening ceremony in July.

Speaking on the floor repairs in September, Stephen Collman said: "Our contractors are carrying out remedial works after identifying problems with the floor finish in parts of the emergency department at Worcestershire Royal Hospital."

Princess Anne officially opened the £35million department in July and, just three months later, it closed to the public.

The new emergency department saw its first patients last October.

UPDATE: Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust has contacted Worcester News to clarify that the waiting area and triage in Worcestershire Royal Hospital is now back open following repairs. Work is ongoing in an isolated area of the emergency department which will be completed in a couple of weeks.