Great Western Hospital, Swindon

This is a shared care unit for both the Bristol Royal Hospital for Children and the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.

The Great Western Hospital is a new purpose built general hospital with a children’s unit incorporating a ward and outpatient clinic facilities.  The care of paediatric oncology patients is mainly shared with Oxford (John Radcliffe Hospital) and Bristol Children’s Hospital, with patients occasionally being referred to Birmingham or London depending on their diagnosis. 

Swindon & Marlborough NHS Trust
The Great Western Hospital
Marlborough Road
Swindon
Wiltshire
SN3 6BB

Telephone: 01793 60 40 20
Website: http://www.swindon-marlborough.nhs.uk/
Map: to view the hospital on a map click here (this takes you to the Multimap site).
top of page

The hospital has several canteens and restaurants. Telephones and vending machines are located throughout the hospital and there is a WRVS shop, post box and cash machine located in the main entrance. 

There are cafes, restaurants and shops available close by.

The nearest banks are HSBC (The Forum, Marlborough Road), Barclays & Lloyds (Swindon High Street) and Natwest (Wood Street). There is a Post Office located in the Liden centre.

Train: The nearest train station is Swindon, located in the town centre 3 miles away. An Express Shuttle bus service links the town centre to the hospital. For timetable information please call National Rail Enquiries on 08457 48 49 50.

Bus: Services run frequently from the town centre and from the surrounding area. Call Thamesdown Transport on 01793 428 428 for more information.

Parking on site: Car parking at the hospital is limited. The hospital encourages both staff and visitors to use alternatives to driving wherever possible.

Parking for visitors: Pay-and-Display parking spaces are available on site in visitor parking areas.  Parking is allowed in marked bays only. All vehicles must display a valid permit or Pay-and-Display ticket. Once parked, visitors are requested to report to reception where they will be directed to the department or ward they are attending. Drop-off areas are provided at some hospital entrances as indicated on the site plan.

Pay and display machines require coins only and do not give change.

You do not need a Pay-and-Display tickets if you are a disabled permit holder, dropping someone off or picking them up at one of the short-stay drop off points or a visitor in possession of a pre-paid parking ticket. 

General: Children’s Unit.

Direct telephone: 01793 60 40 95

No. of beds: There are no set rooms for oncology patients. However, there are 8 side rooms on the ward, which are usually given to oncology patients.

Age range: 0-18, dependent on diagnosis.  However, sometimes this is down to the parents’ preference.

Additional info: This is a mixed ward in terms of children with other illnesses.

Play: There is a playroom on the ward for all the children. There are dedicated play specialists who will look after them and participate in play activities. 

Learning: The schoolroom has educational facilities and staff are able to liaise with the children’s local schools to have work sent over. A purpose built classroom is available for patients and siblings. Within the classroom there are two play specialists. 
 
Other facilities: On the ward there is a parents’ room which has a TV, fridge, microwave and coffee making facilities and is a place where you can meet other parents. A children’s day area is available and there are chemotherapy beds for patients to have their day treatment.  top of page

Meal Times: Meals are at set times.  Breakfast is when the child wakes up, lunch at 12pm and tea at 5pm. However, this is fairly flexible for oncology patients and if the child would like to eat at another time, or would prefer different food, this can be organised.  

Rounds: This will take place with the consultant between 9am-9:30am everyday. An oncology specialist will also come round to see oncology patients, depending on their condition, at regular periods. 

Visiting: No set visiting hours, however the ward does tend to settle down at around 8pm-9pm.
  top of page

A pull-out bed for one parent is available next to each child’s bed on the ward. There is no allocated accommodation on site for parents. If a child is admitted to Oxford the parents can stay in the respective CLIC Sargent Home from Home. This should be organised with the CLIC Sargent staff.

Oncology Clinic: This is held every Thursday morning. The consultant from Oxford attends every three months. A volunteer is always present to entertain the children and their siblings while they wait and to provide parents with morning coffee.

CALM: CALM run a local support group for families.

1 Social Worker
top of page