The Defence Infrastructure Organisation and St Modwen have marked the start of construction on a new accommodation facility at Longbridge.

The facility at Longbridge is for medical specialists who treat injured military personnel at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

Planning consent for the new scheme was approved last year and construction is now underway, with the first occupants due to move into their new accommodation in summer 2017.

The building will provide 180 en-suite bedrooms, catering and support facilities for medical staff based at the hospital’s Royal Centre for Defence Medicine (RCDM).

The high quality residential facility is located at the heart of St. Modwen’s £1 billion Longbridge community, and residents will benefit from a host of local amenities on the doorstep as well as excellent transport links to the hospital and Birmingham city centre.

St. Modwen, the UK’s leading regeneration specialist, is also creating foot and cycle connections between the new building and Longbridge Town Centre, by extending the existing path; which runs alongside the River Rea through Austin Park and under the A38 bridge, to the facility.

Sinead McGoldrick, DIO’s Project Manager, said:

“DIO supports service personnel by providing a fit for purpose estate and accommodation so we’re happy to be undertaking this project with St Modwen. The new accommodation will be of the high quality our dedicated military medical staff deserve.”