Plans submitted for £30 million cancer treatment and research centre

Design plans for the Sir Bobby Robson Institute, a new cancer treatment and research centre at Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital, have been submitted with Robertson Construction North East appointed as main contractor.

The Institute will pioneer innovations in cancer care and expand the number of clinical trials available for patients across the North East, north Cumbria and North Yorkshire.

Robertson Construction has been working with Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust since January, under the ProCure23 framework, providing pre-construction and technical design support alongside P+HS Architects.

The institute’s design is inspired by the molecular hexagon structure behind Rubraca – the first “Geordie cancer drug” – and would unite the existing Sir Bobby Robson Cancer Trials Research Centre with cancer and blood disorder research teams in a new three-storey facility.

Neil Kennedy, Regional Managing Director at Robertson Construction North East, said: “Having already delivered a number of high-quality projects with the NHS, I’m confident this proposed scheme will make a difference for patients, staff and the wider community.”

If planning permission is granted, work could start next spring with completion due in 2028.