Plans for a £15m state-of-the-art mental health facility in Lincoln have moved a step closer, with the launch of a formal process to select a contractor and design for the project.

Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, which manages mental health services across Lincolnshire, has started the process to select a contractor to build a new rehabilitation facility on the St George’s Hospital site on Long Leys Road in Lincoln.

The new facility will replace the two existing in-patient wards already on the site and a third female-only ward will be built which is a new development for the Trust.  These three wards - two single sex and one mixed gender - will each contain 15 beds, an office and therapy space.

Clinical coordinator for the development, Ann Dodd, said: “The new facility will enable local service users to access mental health rehabilitation services that will best meet their needs and be closer to their local community and families.

“The whole service is focused on working towards independence and recovery to enable service users to regain health and mental wellness before being able to move on and live as independently as possible when they are discharged from the service.”

The selection process for the contractor will be completed on 2 December when the successful contractor will be announced.  All the prospective contractors will have access to the library of information gathered from groups in and around Lincolnshire as well as the results of public engagement that sought people’s views. The rehabilitation facility is expected to be open and fully operational by March 2012.