The final plans for the $673.2 million Tweed Valley Hospital have been given the green light today by the NSW Government, paving the way for the main building works to begin.

Member for Tweed Geoff Provest said planning approval of the final hospital design, buildings and landscaping works was a significant milestone in delivering the leading facility.

“This hospital will be transformational for our community, and mean more than 5,000 people each year will no longer need to travel outside the Tweed region to receive life-saving treatments,” Mr Provest said.

“Main works construction can now begin on this fantastic new hospital that will be open to patients in 2023.”

Once complete, the Tweed Valley Hospital will provide significantly improved and expanded services for the local community, including more beds, an expanded emergency department and enhanced medical, surgical and mental health services. It will also have expanded outpatient services with more clinics, new interventional cardiology service and a new radiotherapy service as part of integrated cancer care.

Health Minister Brad Hazzard said the hospital will provide an essential boost to health services in the region. 

“The new Tweed Valley Hospital will provide a significant increase in beds and treatment spaces for the community and will also support the broader Northern NSW region as a referral hospital,” Mr Hazzard said.

“It is fantastic to see such progress on the Tweed Valley Hospital site with our recent, additional funding announcement of $91.2 million, the acceleration of planning approval and main works to shortly begin on site.”

Planning and Public Spaces Minister Rob Stokes said the Tweed Valley Hospital plans were fast-tracked through the Planning System Acceleration Program that is keeping people in jobs and supporting the State’s economy as we respond to the COVID-19 crisis.

“The Tweed Valley Hospital will bring a significant benefit to the local community by creating up to 650 jobs during the peak of construction,” Mr Stokes said.

Early works are expected to be completed in the coming months, which will be followed immediately by main works construction.

The Tweed Valley Hospital was one of 24 projects included in Tranche 2 of the Planning System Acceleration Program.