Edinburgh housing: Liberton hospital to be transformed into almost 400 low-carbon and affordable homes

Edinburgh hospital to be partially demolished to make way for 400 new homes

A 19th century Edinburgh hospital will be partly demolished and transformed into almost 400 new homes. The City of Edinburgh Council has offered £14.8 million to secure Liberton Hospital and its grounds, including the former blood transfusion centre, from NHS Lothian. It paves the way for hundreds of new homes in the area – a significant number of which the council says will be accessible and affordable for social or mid-market rent.

The NHS will continue to occupy the premises until March 2025 to allow the hospital’s remaining services to be gradually relocated, the council said. During this time, the council said it plans to appoint a development partner and consult with the local community to draw up plans for an accessible “green neighbourhood”. The authority says it will retain many original features of the historic hospital, gatehouse and gardens facing Lasswade Road.

The council says its vision for the site is to focus on supporting a range of housing needs while delivering homes at scale to help meet the city’s growing demand. It is anticipated the regeneration will deliver at least 380 energy efficient mixed tenure homes for sale and rent, all of which could be fully accessible, with up to 50 per cent affordable. This would exceed the council's commitment of at least 35 per cent affordable homes on residential developments.

The City of Edinburgh Council has purchased Liberton Hospital.

Councillor Jane Meagher, housing, homelessness and fair work convener, said: “For close to 150 years Edinburgh residents have been cared for under the roof of Liberton Hospital. I'm delighted that we'll be able to pay that care forward as we convert the site into much needed new homes. By demolishing the 1960s built extensions, including the disused Blood Transfusion Service, we’ll be able to design an accessible green neighbourhood of low-carbon housing from scratch.

"This will help lots of people with specialist needs to live comfortably and with independence. Plus, it will allow us support people who are in desperate housing need as we're looking for a developer who can commit to our vision of at least half of these new homes being affordable. We're committed to putting care-based housing at the centre of this redevelopment and I’d like to thank our partners at the NHS for working with us to secure the land. It has been many years in the making."

The council says it aims to retain as many of the existing trees as possible and incorporate them into green routes throughout the site, allowing for active travel connections to Burdiehouse Burn Valley Park, St Katharine’s Park and Liberton Park.

A Prior Information Notice seeking interest from potential development partners has been issued by the council and work will be carried out to prepare for construction, including developing detailed designs and agreeing a net zero carbon energy solution for the site.