Great Ormond Street hospital ‘falling apart’ as power cut halts children's surgery

Great Ormond Street children’s hospital was forced to close nine of its 15 operating theatres after a power failure caused crucial ventilation systems to stop working.

Operations on six children had to be stopped when the hospital declared the incident on Thursday morning.

The ventilation of operating theatres is essential during surgery to draw air up and away from the patient and reduce the risk of contamination and surgical wound infections.

All theatres resumed operation by the end of the day, and the affected children have either had their procedures or are booked in for this week.

One source told The Times: “The place is falling apart. We already had four or five theatres out of action in the past few weeks, two because of leaks and one because of the electrocution incident. Maintenance is poor in the hospital.”

It comes just a week after two nurses were given an electric shock by a light switch in an operating theatre before an operation.

And in 2023, surgical staff at Great Ormond Street (GOSH) had to work by torchlight after a serious power failure in the middle of complex spinal surgery on a child.

GOSH provides specialist care to over 75,000 young people across the UK every year.

The hospital is a densely packed patchwork of old 1930s buildings and modern additions, and it had a backlog maintenance bill of more than £13 million in 2024-25, according to NHS data.

During that period, the trust reported more than 60 incidents where clinical services were affected by failures such as power cuts, leaks, and ventilation breakdowns.

The trust’s board has warned that the ability to deliver patient care could be affected by problems with its estate.

NHS leaders have been forced to use maintenance budgets to support day-to-day spending for years.

More than £4 billion was diverted from capital budgets between 2014 and 2019, delaying essential repairs and replacements, with hospitals across England facing a £16 billion backlog in maintenance.

Around £3.5 billion worth of repairs and investment are classed as high risk, meaning that the work is urgently needed to prevent catastrophic failures, serious injuries or major service disruptions.

The government unveiled a ten-year plan for capital investment in the NHS in July, which will include rebuilding hundreds of GP surgeries, updating hospital infrastructure and investing in new computer systems.

Ministers have pledged to increase the NHS capital budget to £15 billion a year by 2029-30.

A spokesman for the trust said: “We have a well-maintained estate, supported by sustained investment in improvement works, however in recent weeks we have experienced a number of issues with our complex theatre infrastructure. None of these incidents have resulted in any patient safety issues.

“Due to the complexity of our patients, we take a very cautious approach and do not hesitate to close patient spaces if there are any concerns.”