We are the largest and busiest children’s hospital in the UK, with 371 paediatric beds. Our specialised (tertiary) and highly specialist (quaternary) services provide care for children and young people across the North West, across the UK and internationally. We also provide general paediatric care for children and young people living in Greater Manchester.
Our History
Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital can trace its foundations back to 1829. Until relatively recently, our services were provided in three different hospitals across the city: Saint Mary’s, Pendlebury and Booth Hall.
The General Dispensary for the Children of Salford and Manchester was founded in 1829 as a voluntary dispensary in Back King Street, Manchester.
In 1853, a hospital was established on North Parade. It moved to Bridge Street in 1858 and was called the General Hospital and Dispensary for Sick Children. This, in turn, was replaced by Gartside Street Dispensary in 1868 and Pendlebury Hospital in 1873.
By 1890, the Hospital had a reputation for the training of nurses. Nurses came from all over England, and in 1922, it was appointed a registered training centre.
The Hospital was granted permission to include the prefix ‘Royal’ in 1923 and is now called the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital.
Booth Hall was opened by philanthropist Humphrey Booth in 1908 at his home in North Manchester. The Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital Charity mascot, Humphrey the green bear, is named after Humphrey Booth, as he played a key role in laying the foundations of children’s healthcare in Manchester.
In 2009, the hospitals merged together and moved into our brand new, state-of-the-art hospital, alongside the other Manchester University Hospitals on Oxford Road.
Our Services
We offer all of the services that you would expect to find in any major, teaching hospital, except that ours are only for children and young people!
We have 371 paediatric beds, making us the largest children’s hospital in the UK. A further 60 neonatal cots also operate, within the same building, in the tertiary neonatal unit of Saint Mary’s Hospital. This enables the staff of our two hospitals to deliver completely joined up services for families, from prenatal care through birth and beyond.
We are fortunate to share a campus with our Trusts specialist adult hospitals and are also adjacent to the University of Manchester. This enables our teams to collaborate closely with the many international experts working across the site, to deliver both excellent healthcare and a vibrant, world class research programme.
Location
The Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital is located on Oxford Road. For more details about how to get here, visit our Getting Here page.
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Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT)
The Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital is part of Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT). Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust was formed on 1 October 2017 and is responsible for running a family of ten hospitals across seven separate sites. It provides a wide range of services from comprehensive local general hospital care through to highly specialised regional and national services.
Our Values
The Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital is proud to align itself with the shared values of Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust.
We are compassionate
- Care about people, focusing on the needs of all our patients and staff
- Reduce our impact on the environment.
- Support local people and the local economy in our role as a large local employer and consumer.
We are curious
- Use digital technology and other innovations to improve the way we work for patients and our colleagues.
- Use data, insight and evidence to inform the way we deliver services and make decisions.
We are collaborative
- Involve patients and our communities in the planning and delivery our services.
- Work together as one team across MFT.
- Work together with partners across Greater Manchester.
- Use our influence locally and nationally to the benefit of our patients, our communities and our partners.
We are open and honest
- Listen and respond to feedback from staff, patients, communities and partners.
- Celebrate our successes.
- Be honest about where things can be better and share learning to make improvements.
We are inclusive
- Address health inequalities, ensuring everyone can get the care they need and the best possible outcomes whatever their identity or background.
- Build a diverse workforce at all levels in which everyone can belong, and which reflects the people who use our services, helping us to deliver better care and build trust with our communities.