The Government's CDC programme, which delivered more than 160 CDCs, was one of the most ambitious infrastructure rollouts in recent history. Its success has led to a second phase of the programme, which will help reduce patient wait times and highlights the importance of continued investment into healthcare estates. Providing modern care facilities closer to patients' homes reduces both travel times and waiting lists, while supporting NHS staff to deliver earlier intervention, improving the country's health in the long term. 

However, expanding its estate within the specified Government timeframes will require carefully thought-out delivery and innovative building methods, many from modern methods of construction (MMC). With this in mind, how can the NHS meet its building goals with the speed, flexibility and sustainability needed to deliver a modern healthcare estate?

The scale and urgency of this national infrastructure programme presents a major challenge on how to deliver future-proofed healthcare spaces quickly and cost-effectively. Modular manufacturing is one method that is being utilised to improve speed, sustainability and quality for healthcare construction projects. There are a number of barriers that building projects need to overcome on NHS sites. For example, buildings will need to be constructed on working healthcare sites, where traditional building methods can be disruptive to ongoing care as they are noisy and slow to erect. Aging estates might have restricted access, which poses difficulty in delivering the equipment and machinery needed to build a bricks-and-mortar facility where needed onsite. In addition to this, contractors working onsite must follow the NHS's net-zero 2040 target and use an efficient and sustainable approach to construction. To deliver new healthcare buildings effectively, trusts need highly sustainable building solutions that maintain both speed and quality. Taking these challenges into account, modular solutions are an option for future-proofing the NHS estate.

The CDC at Congleton War Memorial Hospital, Cheshire, is one example of how MMC can deliver modern building projects quickly. To upgrade and modernise the facilities, the trust received £5m from the NHS England CDC programme to deliver a new modular diagnostic centre. Premier Modular, a leading offsite modular building specialist, worked with the trust to deliver a new modular CDC in place of the outdated building that would link to the existing hospital. The building was designed with healthcare in mind and has space to offer a range of services, including ultrasound, imaging and cardiorespiratory diagnostics, allowing patients to have multiple tests in a single visit. As the building was manufactured offsite, the new hospital space could be delivered and constructed at speed with minimal site disruption to the working hospital. Modular construction also supports a circular approach to building, with precision manufacturing that minimises waste. Premier Modular manufactured Congleton CDC following its zero-waste-to-landfill policies. Additionally, by enabling spaces to be reconfigured or repurposed over time, this model reduces carbon and helps extend the life of NHS facilities. 

Using modular construction on healthcare sites offers a number of advantages and can enable projects to complete up to 60% faster than traditional methods, significantly reducing deliveries and waste, and also cutting the carbon footprint of each build. Its flexibility means facilities can expand, relocate, or adapt as healthcare needs evolve, ensuring long-term value and resilience. The precision of offsite manufacturing also improves quality and reduces risk, ensuring projects are completed safely and to high clinical standards. These methods align closely with the priorities of NHS and Government programmes to deliver care closer to home, use resources efficiently and support sustainability goals across every part of the health service.

As the NHS faces growing pressure to modernise its estate, reduce waiting times and also meet net-zero goals, the methods used to deliver healthcare buildings must evolve. Traditional construction methods alone are unlikely to meet the scale or speed needed by programmes such as the CDC rollout. MMC and modular provide a future-proof alternative with rapid delivery and minimal disruption to care. The Congleton War Memorial Hospital project demonstrates just how this approach can strengthen community healthcare and deliver high-quality facilities within tight budgets and timeframes. Embracing innovation in construction will be key to ensuring healthcare infrastructure keeps pace with patient needs, supporting both immediate recovery and the long-term resilience of the health service.