Government funding has been secured for a new multi-million pound access road to Watford General Hospital.

Ministers at the Department of Health have earmarked £7m for a new route to the link road with the M1 from the back of the hospital.

The move also brings plans for a new Health Campus development on the site a step closer as a new access route is crucial for the project.

Jan Filochowski, the chief executive of the trust that oversees Watford General, said: “I was surprised and delighted when I found out we had secured the money, we thought it was a bit of a long shot.

“It [the new road] is a fundamental, if not the fundamental building block for the Health Campus."

As well as the £7m the government has also approved another £2.9m which will go towards building a new heat and power plant for the hospital and later the whole Health Campus.