A NEW rehabilitation centre has opened in Rochford Hospital.

The 22-bed Cumberlege Intermediate Care Centre (CICC) was unveiled at the hospital on Union Lane on Tuesday.

Sally Morris, Chief Executive and Professor Sheila Salmon, Chair at Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT), joined members of the staff for the official ribbon cutting opening ceremony.

The CICC will be dedicated to patients who are preparing for discharge. It was relocated from Pantile Avenue, Southend to Rochford Hospital in February.

The centre specialises in physical disabilities, sensory impairments, diseases, disorders or injuries for patients of all ages.

The ward at Rochford Hospital has been refurbished to ensure that it is suited to being an intermediate care facility and provide high quality accommodation for patients.

The move enabled the continued development of the St Luke’s Primary Care facility at the former CICC site in Southend.

The new site has ground floor accommodation, improved designs for better patient observation, access for bariatric patients and bedrooms that enable improved self-care and rehabilitation.

Sally Morris said: "I am pleased that we were able to successfully relocate CICC to Rochford Hospital.

"We have made significant changes to the ward at Rochford Hospital so that people who are going though rehabilitation will have access to the best facilities.

"Thank you to all our staff for making this relocation possible.”

EPUT provide community health, mental health and learning disability services for a population of approximately 1.3 million people throughout Essex and Suffolk.

They also provide immunisation and some inpatient services in Bedfordshire.

The trust was formed on April 1 2017 following the merger of North Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (NEP) and South Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (SEPT).