£5.5m Leicester Diabetes Centre expansion completed

Construction firm Stepnell has completed a £5.5 million refurbishment and extension of Leicester Diabetes Centre at Leicester General Hospital.

Delivered for University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust and the University of Leicester through the NHS Shared Business Services framework, the project forms the first phase of a wider expansion of the research facility.

The three-storey extension provides additional clinical research rooms, offices, staff facilities, a lifestyle gymnasium and a metabolic kitchen. The design, developed by Stephen George + Partners, also includes full-height windows and a glazed atrium.

The 52-week construction programme was carried out on an operational hospital site surrounded by occupied buildings. Preparatory works included removing an embankment and diverting a mains electrical supply.

Tom Sewell, director at Stepnell, said: “Live healthcare sites demand specialist experience and the client-contractor relationship is vital to exceeding the required behaviours of working on site. Building next to live wards caring for very ill patients meant we had to work closely with University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust to ensure we took a considerate and efficient approach to the delivery programme.”

Stepnell worked with specialist contractors to ensure the new facilities met healthcare building standards, while coordinating deliveries and crane operations with the NHS Trust to minimise disruption.

The project also incorporated rooftop solar panels installed by Step Energy, part of Stepnell Group. Most of the labour and supply chain expenditure remained within 30 miles of the site.

The scheme was shortlisted for Medium Non-Residential Scheme of the Year at the 2026 ProCon Leicestershire Awards.