A popular open-top bus service will return to Southend’s seafront from this weekend.
 
Go-Ahead London have announced that the red and white Route 68 bus service will once again be navigating its way along the Southend-on-Sea seafront between the Kursaal and Leigh-on-Sea from this weekend. The "hop-on, hop-off" service will run between the following stops:
 

• The Kursaal
• Westcliff Palmeira Arches
• Chalkwell Shelter
• Chalkwell Station
• Leigh, The Ship (Old Leigh)
• Leigh-on-Sea Station
• Leigh Broadway

 
The service will run for an additional six weeks compared to 2017, with the service initially running from Saturday 26 May for the Bank Holiday weekend, and will then return on Saturday 09 June to run daily until Saturday 01 September.
 
Thomas Drake, from Go-Ahead London's commercial department and the driving force behind the 68 commented: "We are very pleased Route 68 will again take to the streets of Southend, with an enhanced frequency during the summer break and a longer overall operating period.  This service has been really well received and we hope our regulars, plus some new users, take advantage of our competitive fares and improved timetable."
 
The route 68 bus service fees must be paid on the bus and in cash, and have been frozen in line with 2017. They are:

• Adult day ticket - £4
• Adult return - £3
• Adult Single - £2 
• Child/Concession day ticket - £2
• Child/Concession return - £1.50
• Child/Concession single - £1 
• Five together all day ticket (Unlimited rides all day for five people travelling together) - £10

 
For more information visit https://www.goaheadlondon.com/events/post/discover-southend-on-sea-and-leigh-on-sea-with-open-top-route-68

More restaurants and bars are on the way to Southend Airport after a £5m partnership was announced this week.

Award-winning TRG Concessions will take over the existing airport-operated outlets and their teams in June 2018. These will then be transformed into a bespoke pub and dining concept named The Navigator, along with Giraffe Stop and Costa outlets, during the summer. They have further plans to introduce more nationally recognised food and drink brands over the coming years.

This partnership will see TRG invest more than £5m developing the food and beverage offer at London Southend over the next 10 years, with these developments expected to create further jobs in the airport.

Glyn Jones, Chief Executive Officer of Stobart Aviation, owners of London Southend Airport, said "We are consistently voted Best Airport in London and a key part of our mission is to deliver a great experience for our guests.  We know from customer feedback that improving our food and beverage offer is the main way we can make their experience even better, so this new partnership with TRG Concessions, which will bring recognised brands to London Southend Airport, is fantastic news for passengers. It is also a great vote of confidence in the UK’s fastest growing airport, another step along our road to becoming both bigger and better."

Commenting on the deal, Nick Ayerst, MD TRG Concessions said “We are delighted to have acquired sites at London Southend Airport, given its future growth prospects. We look forward to trading them with a view to developing further award-winning new concessions at the airport over the next few years. We welcome our new team members into the business and will be investing in them to help support future growth in our Southend business.”

Southend University Hospital has expanded its critical care facility to provide a £1 million high-dependency unit (HDU) for patients, increasing its ability to help more patients who need extra care.

Known as the Kitty Hubbard HDU, it will strengthen the service the hospital provides for patients who have had major surgery or who no longer need intensive care but still require specialist monitoring and require a higher level of organ support.

This brand new state-of-the-art facility will care for both elective and emergency patients, and will initially have four beds.

Blanca Boira Segarra, Clinical Director for Theatres, Critical Care & Anaesthetics, said:  "Until now we didn't have a dedicated area for these patients and Kitty Hubbard HDU will support patients from all specialities across the hospital who need a higher level of care than can be provided on the speciality wards, but who do not need intensive care. In HDU the patient and nurse ratio is much higher than in a normal ward, there will be one nurse looking after two patients.

"In addition, the HDU beds could prevent admission of deteriorating patients to ITU by providing speedy intervention in a high dependency environment. Prior to HDU opening these patients would be cared for in wards across the Trust, now we will bring patients together for specialist care rather than our staff and equipment having to go to several different areas.

"The new unit will also help us stepping patients down from the Intensive Care Unit before they go back to a normal ward. This will have a positive impact on the capacity to admit intensive care patients." 

And this has been made a reality, in part, thanks to the generosity of local people. £212k was donated by the hospital associated charities who helped bring this fantastic lifeline to patients into being. This money enabled the Trust to purchase essential medical equipment to furnish the unit with state-of-the-art technology.

The Southend Hospital Charitable Foundation For Wards Appeal contributed £60,000 towards the cost of equipping one HDU bed.  The majority of this money, £50,000, was raised from the proceeds of the Southend Hospital Charity Shop in Hamlet Court Road, Westcliff, which equates to a year and a half's trading income.  The remaining £152,000 came from donations and legacies left to Southend Hospital Charity for the benefit of critically ill patients. 

Fred Heddell, Chair of the Charitable Funds Committee said: "We are proud to support the opening of this fantastic new facility. Our thanks go to the local community who supported our appeal and for the generosity of legators, who have been kind enough to remember us in their wills."