Coronavirus: Yorkshire NHS Nightingale hospital to remain open
An NHS Nightingale hospital will remain open for another month despite never having treated a patient with Covid-19.
The temporary hospital at Harrogate Convention Centre, Yorkshire, opened in April and has a 500-bed capacity. The venue is owned by Harrogate Borough Council and it confirmed the contract with NHS England for the building had been extended until 31 July. The hospital is one of seven in the UK that either remain on standby or are being stood down. NHS England does not pay any rent to the convention centre or the council. Harrogate Borough Council told the Local Democracy Reporting Service it was facing a £15m deficit this year as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, a significant proportion of that was lost revenue from the convention centre. The hospital, which took 18 days to construct, began offering outpatient appointments for patients with radiology referrals from 4 June and it is continuing to offer appointments seven days a week. Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to yorkslincs.news@bbc.co.uk.