The tier one contractor’s Essex business was selected for the six projects as part of the new ProCure23 framework.

Peter Whitmore, managing director for Morgan Sindall Construction in the East, said that two main aspects of the work will include a new Community Diagnostic Centre in Pitsea and the creation of the Southend Elective Surgical Hub.

The CDC is set to be delivered on the site of Pitsea leisure centre, which is to be demolished. The new community diagnostic facility will include a new MRI and CT scanning suite, X-ray machines, a pharmacy, ultrasound, consultancy rooms, phlebotomy area, as well as a new library and sporting facilities.

This will be one of around 30 new centres in the UK, which are part of a government initiative following the Covid-19 pandemic to move diagnostics out of acute hospitals and into community sites to provide easier public access and earlier diagnosis.

In addition, Morgan Sindall will build a new elective surgery hub at Southend University Hospital.

This work will consist of installing two new surgical theatres, which will significantly expand the hospital’s existing capacity.

Now in its fourth generation, the P23 framework ensures that NHS capital works adopt the principles of the government’s Construction Playbook, modern construction on delivery and a focus on sustainability and social value.

P23 has an expected cumulative spend of £9bn during its four-year lifespan and it builds on the successes of three previous iterations of ProCure that have delivered over £10bn of projects for the NHS.