Relentless noise from £1bn hospital construction site is making us ill, say neighbours

Martin Shipton

Controversy continues to surround Wales’ most expensive hospital project, with neighbouring residents complaining that noisy “out-of-hours” building work is damaging their physical and mental health.

The decision to site the new £1bn Velindre Cancer Centre on a much-loved green space called the Northern Meadows in Cardiff’s Whitchurch suburb was bitterly opposed on environmental and clinical grounds.

That battle was lost, but neighbouring residents say that now the centre is being built, their lives are being ruined by long hours of construction work that goes beyond the originally permitted working hours.

At a recent community liaison meeting local residents told Velindre University NHS Trust and building contractor Sacyr UK how the relentless noise from additional working hours during the evenings, night time and weekends was making them ill.

Extra hours

Permitted construction work hours are supposedly 8am to 6pm on weekdays and 8am to 1pm on Saturdays. But Velindre Trust and Sacyr UK have, say the residents, been insisting on working extra hours for months.

According to the Trust, progress on the project is on schedule for the planned opening date of Spring 2027. Yet according to the site’s neighbours, neither the Trust nor Sacyr UK have provided any credible reason as to why they are making over 500 local residents live through the noise.

Residents say that for the sake of their physical and mental health Velindre Trust and Sacyr UK must stop these extra working hours, and go back to the agreed working hours. They say it is a choice by Velindre Trust and Sacyr UK to work these late hours, and the choice is making residents ill. People are asking the Trust and the construction firm to listen to residents, show them some respect and halt the additional working hours.

‘Relentless noise’

Paul Gough, a Whitchurch resident, stated: “Having been subjected to relentless noise during the day, we are now having to listen to out of hours pounding and bleeping. Not having been well for the past 18 months and a recovering cancer patient, it is affecting my well-being.

“It’s very difficult to find some silence throughout the day. Our home is getting noisier and there is no way to turn the volume down.”

Another resident who lives next to the construction site and didn’t want to be named said: “The building work is noisy and intrusive. The banging, crashing, drilling, grinding and shouting is so loud it is impossible to get any peace.

“Late night working even with the so-called mitigation is awful and makes it impossible to have an early night or indeed a relaxing evening.

“The dust and dirt is impacting our homes, vehicles and our health.

“Work frequently starts earlier than 8am; builders filling skips before 8am is noisy; it’s not just the building work itself.

“There should be a complete stop of all activities during the night, evenings and early mornings. No extensions to day time work should be allowed: residents’ health is suffering.”

Noise and lights

A spokesperson for Whitchurch and Tongwynlais Partnerships and Communities Together (PACT) said: “Many residents have engaged with PACT about their problems with noise and lights, and the effect this is having on their health. I have told local councillors, Velindre Trust, Sacyr UK, and Cardiff council’s Shared Regulatory Services about these problems.”

A local resident wrote a complaint to Cardiff Council Noise Control, stating: “I have PTSD and bipolar disorder and the noise from the workmen building the hospital is not on. Yesterday they started work at 6am.

“The metal banging and the shouting and the disturbance is really getting to me. I don’t sleep well as it is and you are making my life harder. Have some respect.

“It is a lie saying it’s a one off as this morning at 5.45 the workmen have been banging and shouting. I’m not happy about being lied to and not happy being woken up when I hardly sleep. It’s outrageous; just be honest as you don’t have to live here.”

A resident at the community meeting told Trust and Sacyr UK representatives: “If you are trying to make up time, why is it not possible for you to employ more workers during sensible and humane working hours like 8am to 6pm?

“It is so horrific for us, and the mental and physical suffering that many of us are going through. Lots of people in the area are suffering from cancer, including myself.

“We have made complaints and we get ridiculous replies back. We’ve had cold, hot, rain, wind and the Oasis concert all as excuses as to why you are disturbing our lives to such an extent to 10pm and beyond, and from 5 to 6 in the mornings. Why are you doing this and when is someone going to be held to account? It seems you can work with impunity and do whatever you like.

“Have you been to someone’s balcony on the fifth floor when you are testing the noise? Why are you making us suffer to such a ridiculous extent?“

‘Seriously ill’

Another person at the same community meeting said: “This noise is driving my husband insane. He’s seriously ill at the moment. We just want some quiet time. Before 7am in the morning is not acceptable.”

Residents pointed out that research has shown that environmental noise is one of the leading environmental risks for physical and mental health, and contributes significantly to the burden of disease.

Chronic noise exposure is linked to hypertension, ischaemic heart disease, diabetes, and tinnitus. It is also linked to depression, anxiety, raised stress levels, sleep disturbance, and the exacerbation of existing mental health issues.

Velindre Trust committee papers from July 2025 state: “Good progress is being made overall with the construction programme ahead of the programme by circa five weeks on one side of the building, but behind on the other side of the building by around the same time period. There are clear acceleration measures in place by the contractor extending the working hours to close the gap. A full programme in place in the Summer once the concrete frame is complete.”

‘On schedule’

A local resident said: “In Velindre’s own words the construction programme is overall on schedule, and Velindre keeps telling us the new Velindre Cancer Centre is going to open as planned in Spring 2027. So there is absolutely no need for Velindre and Sacyr to be putting local residents through a noise hell.

“It is shocking, but not surprising, that no Welsh Labour politician has stood up for the local residents. None of them have effectively challenged either Velindre or Sacyr for working all these late hours, or Cardiff council for repeatedly granting these extra hours. Has any local politician, whether a councillor, MS or MP, been inside a Hollybush flat to hear and see for themselves what the residents are having to cope with? Is it any wonder that people feel abandoned by politicians and that there’s no point in telling them about their problems.

“It really is time that local Welsh Labour politicians were pro-active in standing up for the people they are paid to represent. Why be a politician if you don’t represent your constituents in their time of need? And surely Cardiff council has a duty of care to its tenants?”

A resident of the Hollybush estate said “Normal working hours for all building sites are 8am to 6pm on weekdays and 8am to 1pm on Saturdays. Persistent loud noise for all these hours is difficult enough to try and cope with for the four years of the new Velindre construction, especially as Velindre chose a site where it knew over 500 people lived so close they’d be seriously affected by the construction site noise. Also many of us live in tower blocks where there is no screening of the noise by hedges or trees.

“As if these usual working hours aren’t bad enough for local residents, Sacyr has been applying for and been granted permission by Cardiff council to work much longer hours. These extra hours include Monday to Thursday evenings until 10pm, early mornings from 6am, Saturday afternoons and overnight working. Just imagine trying to cope with loud banging, crashing and shouting for all that time. Is it any wonder that local residents are saying how all this noise for this amount of time is making them stressed and ill.

“One elderly resident who suffers from a serious neurological illness is having to leave his home early every morning and wander around town to escape the noise. Early morning and evening work should not be allowed, as not only this resident but all residents should have some respite.

“Residents were initially told these extra hours would only be for construction activities which could not be completed within the 8am to 6pm normal construction hours. The main activity which residents were told needed evening and overnight working was the concrete pour and finishing for the building frame.

“But now residents are being told, without any consultation with us, that a whole new list of additional ‘non-noisy works’ will now be done in the evenings and Saturday afternoons. These works include adding steel reinforcing bars to concrete, and crane lifting. Most people would understand ‘non-noisy’ as meaning free from sound or silent. But people who live nearby say the noise from the evening construction works is seriously affecting them.

“None of these ‘non-noisy works’ need to be carried out in evenings and Saturday afternoons; they can all be done during standard construction hours.”

‘Vital project’

A Velindre University NHS Trust spokesman said: “The new Velindre Cancer Centre is a vital project which will support the delivery of high-quality cancer services across Wales and the improvement of outcomes for our patients. The Trust is extremely mindful that construction schemes of the scale of the new Velindre Cancer Centre will unfortunately cause disruption for the local community at certain stages of the process. The Trust is sorry for any disruption and is extremely thankful for the community’s understanding while this necessary work is undertaken.

“We continue to work in partnership with our construction partner Sacyr to ensure they minimise the impact on the local community wherever possible. We are aware that Sacyr have taken a number of measures to minimise disruption for the local community which includes working within standard construction times and approved out-of-hours working; and monitor all noise levels on site. These are in accordance with the planning conditions.

“We will continue to work with the local community and Sacyr to do everything we can to reduce any impacts going forward.

“The most recent Noise, Vibration, Air & Water Quality Report from July 2025 states that no noise exceedances were recorded in the period 24/06/25 – 22/07/25. Sacyr has set a soft limit of 65dB and anything surpassing this limit requires investigation, though mitigation measures need to be in place for anything over the hard limit of 70dB.”