Rob Burrow Centre for MND Appeal FAQs

What is Motor Neurone Disease (MND)?

Motor neurone disease (MND) affects the nerves – called motor neurones – in the brain and spinal cord. MND is a life-shortening disease with no cure. Although the disease will progress, symptoms can be managed to help achieve the best possible quality of life.

Read more: What is Motor Neurone Disease? (MND)

Why do we need a new MND centre?

Originally built with care for infectious diseases in mind, the current home of the Centre is now showing its age. Significantly, the technology relating to the care needs of people with MND has moved on, whilst the building remains the same.

The current MND centre is located on a busy multi-purpose ward not built with MND patients in mind and without the ability to be fitted with equipment and facilities for those who are physically impaired.

Over the past ten years, referrals to the Leeds MND centre have doubled, with 40 new referrals each year. MND patients are also being diagnosed earlier so are living with the disease for longer.  To continue to provide the best quality service, the team need access to facilities tailored to their patients' specific needs.

Read more: Why do we need a new hospital for MND?

What will the Rob Burrow Centre for MND be like?

We hope that the Rob Burrow Centre for MND will provide a calm and peaceful place where patients can ‘live in the now.’ The centre will be completely accessible, including parking and toilets, and have everything patients need under one roof, from physiotherapy, to diet and nutrition, psychological support, and palliative care.

Ambitious plans for this bespoke centre include a host of individual treatment rooms, accessible toilets and changing facilities, an education space for staff and hopefully a space where the latest equipment and technologies can be made available for patients to explore.

Read more: The Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease

Is there anything like this already in the UK?

While other MND research and treatment centers exist, The Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease will be the first to have its design led by the holistic needs of the patient and their family, creating a supportive environment that complements the expert team providing the care.

Where will the new centre be located?

In November 2022, demolition work took place at Seacroft Hospital to clear the proposed area to build the new Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease. Located just off the main road, the new centre will help reduce travel across hospital sites and be much more accessible for patients with mobility issues.

When will the Rob Burrow Centre for MND open?

We hope to open the doors of the Rob Burrow Centre for MND in Summer 2025. We hope to release full plans, architects designs and more details over the coming months.

How much will the Rob Burrow Centre for MND project cost?

Since announcing the location for the centre last November as Seacroft Hospital, consultation work with staff, patients and their carers and wider services in the city has been extensive.

Due to the economic climate and enhancements to the specifications of the centre, the fundraising total is now £6.8 million to build what will be a state-of-the-art Motor Neurone Disease centre. The cost of the centre will be set at a maximum £6.8 million, we hope we can deliver it for under this amount.

Read more: How much will the Rob Burrow Centre for MND project cost?

Why isn’t the Rob Burrow Centre for MND being funded by the NHS?

Our NHS hospitals receive basic funding from the government. We raise funds for projects, above and beyond what the NHS can provide, to support the latest in healthcare innovation and technology, the treatment of rare conditions and to help reduce health inequalities.

Thanks to your donations, we provide over £6.6 million every year to support projects that make a real difference to staff, patients and families across Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

The funds needed to make this exceptional centre a reality are above and beyond what the NHS can provide for people living with MND and their families.

How did the appeal come about?

The work that Rob Burrow has been doing to raise the profile of MND and to boldly share his journey with the disease has raised the profile of MND significantly. His tireless work to further knowledge and understanding has allowed others to recognise their condition earlier.

It is thanks to Rob, his family and your donations that a new purpose-built care centre of excellence will be built, as a positive and fitting legacy to the work that Rob has done in this area.

How much has been raised so far?

Thanks to our incredible fundraisers, the generosity of over 7,000 donors, Kevin Sinfield’s epic challenges and over 600 people who took part in the Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon, we have now reached £4.9 million!

We are so grateful to everyone who has got behind our appeal, from local businesses and community groups, to people across the nation and even the globe who have tirelessly fundraised, and we know with your continued support, we are confident that we reach our target of £6.8 million.

Has the architect for the Rob Burrow Centre for MND been chosen? Are there any designs or visuals of the new centre?

Corstorphine & Wright, a multi award-winning, chartered architectural practice has been appointed to take the project onto the design and build stage as part of a competitive tender to be appointed on the projects. They have 11 studios throughout the UK, and have worked on a wide variety of projects across the country from the redevelopment of the former Waterloo International terminal to the transformation of the Royal Liver Building. 

An intimate audience of approximately 20 people, including Rob Burrow and his parents Geoff and Irene, took part in the first engagement session held by the newly appointed architect firm for the Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease.