NHS criticised for spending £40,000 to hire a marquee to hold drive-thru blood test clinic in Yorkshire

The request revealed that a marquee housing the drive-through phlebotomy clinic at Doncaster Rovers’ Eco Power Stadium had been hired by NHS South Yorkshire at a total cost of £41,418.

The phlebotomy drive-through was created in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

NHS South Yorkshire stated its closure marked “a return to business as usual” following the pandemic.

Don Valley MP Nick Fletcher, who had campaigned to prevent the clinic’s closure, criticised spending by the local NHS.

He said: “As you all know, the local ICB of the NHS decided to close down the highly popular and extremely successful phlebotomy drive through at the Eco Power Stadium.

“The drive through worked efficiently and effectively. It saved people time and took the pressure off the DRI and local GPs.

“I was told it was to be closed because of financial reasons. That didn’t stack up either when I went into it as there were to be no redundancies and the stadium said they would even halve the rent.

“I have been digging further into this. It transpires that the NHS ICB didn’t buy a marquee. They rented one and have paid out upwards of £41,000 for it. It’s sheer madness. Who would do that if it was their own money?

“I continue to campaign for the drive through service to be reinstated. It worked well and should never have been axed.”