PATIENTS visiting Southampton General Hospital this week will be the among the first to use a new-look £2.5 million entrance featuring shops and a food hall complex.

The flagship centre fitted with a fresh range of healthy eating outlets will be officially unveiled at a ceremony on Friday at the Tremona Road hospital.

Now chiefs at University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust are urging patients and their families to join them.

A new programme to improve staff health and wellbeing is also being launched.

The innovative development features a new reception desk, waiting areas and a range of food outlets including Subway, M&S Simply Food and M&S Café.

The League of Friends shop, Costa Coffee, the hospital pharmacy, WHSmith and the Stockshop remain within the entrance in renovated and improved facilities.

The scheme has been funded through University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust’s commercial partner Interserve Prime as part of an agreement that will see revenue from the entrance and retail area reinvested into NHS services.

All of the food brands have signed up to the government’s Public Health Responsibility Deal, which includes pledges such as calorie, salt and saturated fat reduction, non-use of artificial trans fats and the inclusion of a range of fruit and vegetable options.

There will also be new toilets, baby changing facilities and travel information screens.

Youngsters at Southampton Children’s Hospital will join health bosses for the ribbon-cutting at the ceremony.

It also marks the unveiling of the trust’s LiveWell and Inspire programme, aiming to improve staff health.

and wellbeing and a celebrate the organisation’s diverse workforce.

A dedicated self-referral clinic for staff with musculoskeletal problems, voluntary health checks for staff over the age of 40, mindfulness support and advice to support lifestyle changes such as smoking cessation, weight management and increasing physical activity are among the plans.

Livewell stalls will be set up on the day offering weight, BMI and blood pressure checks, nutrition and dietary advice and alcohol support.

There will also be free food tasting and a speech on healthy eating by representatives from the trust’s catering partner Medirest.

Representatives from Southampton Hospital Charity team will host a raffle and highlight upcoming fundraising events.

Trust chief executive Fiona Dalton said: “We are really looking forward to celebrating the completion of this project with as many patients, visitors and staff as possible as a thank you to them all for their patience and to highlight some of the benefits the new entrance brings.

“It is also a great opportunity to link our drive to improve health and wellbeing among staff, as well as our patients, visitors and members of the public, and we hope to provide an insight into some of the fantastic developments taking place here to help us achieve that.”