Five years on: Looking Back at Kemp’s Role in Covid
Take a trip down memory lane 5 years on as Kemp looks back on 2020 and the essential, urgent work completed during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Utility Survey of the Exeter Nightingale hospital
2020 was a year that will live long in the memory. As the world shut down in response to the rapid spread of the Covid-19 virus, lines formed for basic supermarket necessities and hundreds of thousands of Brits were furloughed from work. Meanwhile, the worlds of engineering and construction continued in earnest, providing essential services to support the urgent demand for more hospital beds in response to the strain placed on the NHS by the virus.
200 years on from her death, Florence Nightingale gained an unexpected tribute by lending her name to seven emergency NHS ‘Nightingale’ hospitals across the country. Costing a collective £530m, these hospitals would provide what NHS England called ‘the ultimate insurance policy’ at the height of the pandemic.
With factors including the social distancing measures in place, biosecurity issues to consider and supply delays caused by lockdowns, building these hospitals would have been a huge task even without the rapid turnaround required! But, when it came to the South West’s very own Nightingale (situated in Exeter), Kemps were on hand to rise to these challenges and deliver.
Unlike many other Nightingale projects, the Exeter hospital needed to be fully transformed into a medical setting. Under the leadership of Philippa Slinger, the NHS CEO responsible for the project, Exeter’s Nightingale was repurposed from an old Homebase unit and 60 surrounding single storey prefabricated buildings, and turned into a hospital with 116 beds in just 57 days. For context on what a feat this is - a recent study by the PSC found that hospitals routinely take 17 years to build in the UK..!
To deliver the job on time, this project truly pushed the teams involved to their limits and is testament to their resilience and determination under extraordinary circumstances. Clearly, collaboration was to be key to the success of the project - indeed, over 2,500 people were involved in the creation of the hospital, with 467 on-site at the busiest time.
Representing Kemp and Seeka were the team of Josh, Rich, Chris, Connor, Sam K, Ben R, Pete, and Lauren K, who worked alongside a team from BAM Construction and architects Stride Treglown, plus engineers from Arup, to deliver services including Setting Out, Topographical Survey, Utility Survey and CCTV Survey.
Looking back on the project, Scott Kemp, Director of Kemp Chartered Land and Engineering Surveyors, said:
"This was one of the most challenging projects we have ever worked on, but also one of the most rewarding. The teamwork, dedication, and sheer determination to deliver under extraordinary circumstances was remarkable. We are incredibly proud to have played a part in such an essential piece of infrastructure."
Remarkably, Exeter Nightingale Hospital is the only Nightingale facility that is still in use by the NHS today, now a diagnostic centre helping to deal with the huge backlog of patients caused by Covid-19. In July 2024 it celebrated the opening of the new Buttercup unit, dealing with cardiology, respiratory and gastroenterology diagnostic services, with a view to further expansion of this offering. Deputy chief executive officer Chris Tidman said that in the years since its inception the hospital has become a "truly world class facility, offering speedy and high-quality care to the people of Devon". Certainly, something for the team involved to be proud of!
While the Nightingale project was a key part of Kemp’s pandemic response, it was far from the only essential work undertaken during lockdown. Across the Southwest, our teams supported critical hospital projects, ensuring essential infrastructure developments could progress despite the restrictions. These included:
Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital – Conducting surveys to assist with planning for new facilities.
Derriford Hospital, Plymouth – Providing topographical and utility surveys for future development projects.
Royal Cornwall Hospital, Treliske – Supporting emergency planning and future developments with detailed site surveys.
Throughout this period, our teams adapted to evolving safety measures, ensuring work could continue efficiently while safeguarding both our staff and the wider community. The pandemic reinforced the vital role of surveying in maintaining and expanding healthcare infrastructure during times of crisis.
Looking back, the challenges of the pandemic were immense, but the dedication shown by our teams stands as a testament to Kemp’s commitment to delivering essential services no matter the circumstances. Whether it was transforming a retail unit into a hospital in record time or ensuring vital surveys could continue for NHS expansions, we are proud to have played our part in supporting the UK’s response to Covid-19.