Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust has awarded a £40m contract to Integrated Health Projects (IHP) for the construction of a mental health inpatient unit in Blackpool.

The trust has announced that work will begin on The Harbour at the beginning of April, ready for the unit to be operational by spring 2015. The development will have a total of 154 beds including a psychiatric intensive care unit.

"The signing of the contracts symbolises the culmination of a number of years of hard work by trust staff working in partnership with our consultants and our lead contractor," said Alistair Rose, Project Director at Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust.

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"The building has been designed with the involvement of service users and carers and we have worked on developing the model of care so that our service users can be looked after in the best environment."

The trust will be working in partnership with IHP, a joint venture between VINCI Construction UK and Sir Robert McAlpine.

Mark Thomas, IHP's Regional Director, said: "We are delighted to continue our longstanding partnership with the trust through this hugely significant contract. The new unit will achieve a more therapeutic environment for the people who use the service and better working conditions for staff."

(CD)