The Minister of State for Health visited Kettering General Hospital on Monday (September 15) to see first-hand the work to improve its facilities.

Karin Smyth MP toured the Rothwell Road site with Kettering’s MP Rosie Wrighting, where she spoke with hospital staff and leaders about plans to give local people the hospital they deserve.

Work on a new energy centre, the crucial first step in the hospital’s redevelopment, has started and the Rockingham Wing is being extended to provide better maternity facilities.

The rebuild of the hospital has also been put on an honest and deliverable footing after the previous Conservative Government cynically committed to it without committing anywhere close to the funding required to deliver it.

Karin Smyth MP and Rosie Wrighting MP speak to staff at Kettering General Hospital.

placeholder image — Karin Smyth MP and Rosie Wrighting MP speak to staff at Kettering General Hospital.

Karin Smyth MP said: “It was brilliant to visit Kettering General Hospital today to see the work they are doing to improve facilities for people in the town and across the region.

“For too long hospitals like Kettering were given promises by a Tory government that would never be kept.

“With a Labour MP in Rosie Wrighting and a Labour Government in power, plans to build the new energy centre are already underway and the new maternity unit will be built.

“Labour delivers on its promises and will make sure Kettering gets the health service it deserves.”

Rosie Wrighting MP and Karin Smyth MP saw work under way at KGH.

During the visit the Health Minister saw facilities in the emergency department, was shown work at the Rockingham Wing, which was impacted by the discovery of RAAC in 2024, and progress on the new energy centre, which replaces the temporary steam boilers and ageing electrical infrastructure that currently provide energy for the hospital.

Kettering MP Rosie, who was recently appointed as parliamentary private secretary to the Department of Health and Social Care, said: “It was fantastic to welcome Karin to KGH today to see work which has started since Labour took office.

“I know how important our hospital is to local people and I’ll continue to campaign tirelessly to make sure we have an NHS that is fit for the future.”