Health minister Karin Smyth MP and TV doctor and broadcaster Dr Sarah Jarvis attended the official opening of the first building on the University of Huddersfield’s £250 million National Health Innovation Campus.

The six-storey Daphne Steele Building is named after the trailblazing Guyana-born nurse who became the first black matron in the NHS in 1964.

The opening ceremony was also attended by Mrs Steele’s son Robert, university Chancellor Sir George Buckley, Vice-Chancellor Prof Bob Cryan and Huddersfield MP Harpreet Uppal.

The National Health Innovation Campus is a project to improve the health of the public and lead innovations in health care and well-being across the North of England.

It aims to combine specialist teaching and learning facilities, clinics for the public and entrepreneurial and academic partnerships.

The Daphne Steele Building features state-of-the-art equipment and facilities for the university’s midwifery, nursing, occupational therapy, operating department practice, paramedic science, physiotherapy, podiatry and speech and language therapy courses.

Construction at the seven-acre site on Southgate began in early 2023. The university has planning permission for up to seven buildings with construction of the next, the Emily Siddon Building, due for completion in autumn 2025.

 

 

Sir George said: “Daphne was a true pioneer of healthcare and she was renowned for her expertise, care and compassion, which are all as relevant now as they were when she was working in the NHS.

“We are humbled that Robert and the Steele family have allowed us to help to inspire the next generation of healthcare professionals by naming this wonderful new facility in Daphne’s honour.”

Mrs Steele’s son Robert said: “I had seen the images of what the building would look like but to be here in the flesh has surpassed everything that I thought it would be.”

 

 

Ms Smyth, Minister of State at the Department of Health and Social Care, said: “This building pays tribute to the countless contributions of migrant workers who have played a crucial role in the NHS since its creation over 75 years ago.

“Their dedication and commitment are foundational to the health service we rely on today, and I am proud that we are recognising this legacy here.”

Dr Jarvis is also Visiting Professor for General Practice at the University of Huddersfield.

 

University of Huddersfield to launch public lectures with talk on the National Health Innovation Campus