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Visiting

Find information on:

Inpatient wards

Visitors are welcome on most wards from midday to 9pm. A maximum of two people at a time can visit one patient. If you would like to visit outside of standard visiting hours please contact the ward and speak to the nurse in charge.

On children’s wards: parents or care givers can visit anytime. In addition, two visitors can attend from midday to 9pm. Please note, only one parent or care giver can stay overnight. Siblings are not permitted to stay overnight.

On critical care wards: two visitors can attend 2pm to 7.30pm.

On maternity wards: birthing partners can visit anytime. In addition, two visitors can attend Monday to Friday 2pm to 7pm, or weekends 10am to 7pm.

End of life care patients and in exceptional circumstances: visiting is permitted 24/7 in arrangement with the nurse in charge. Up to four visitors can attend end of life care patients if this can safely happen.

Visiting times may change at short notice.

Pregnant people and birthing partners

Two birth partners can be with you throughout your labour and can be present when you are receiving one-to-one care from a midwife in a labour room and during inductions of labour, elective cases, or High Dependency Unit care.

On the postnatal and antenatal wards, one support person is welcome for the duration of your stay.

You will be able to attend hospital-based antenatal clinics (Windsor walk, Venetian building, Community Midwives Centre, Midwives House, Orpington Hospital, Beckenham Beacon and Queen Mary’s – Sidcup) with one other person.

End of life care patients

Patients nearing the end of their lives can have up to four visitors where this can happen safely. However, please speak to the ward manager in advance before agreeing how many visitors are permitted, and when the visits can take place. We will do our very best to accommodate your wishes.

Patients with disabilities or specific care needs

Patients with specific care needs, including dementia, learning disabilities or mental health needs, will be permitted visitors for extended periods, but please agree this with the relevant ward leader, matron or head of nursing for the area in which they are being cared for.

The same applies to patients in distress, or who are deteriorating due to isolation from visitors. However, as above, please agree this with the ward leader, matron or head of nursing for the area in which they are being cared for.

If you cannot visit

You may wish to use phone, email, Skype, FaceTime or WhatsApp to keep in touch with relatives or friends in the hospital. All patients at King’s College Hospital have access to free patient Wi-Fi. You can also use our Letter to Loved Ones email service.

Helping us to ensure patient privacy and dignity

Please respect our limits on the number of visitors patients can have at any one time. Our patients need a peaceful and calm environment to recover in and large numbers of visitors can be noisy and disruptive.

Patients may be very unwell and we often have to transfer them around the hospital, to and from theatres and wards. Please give them priority when you are taking a lift.

If you are not a patient, please use visitor toilets instead of patient toilets where possible. This gives patients more privacy and reduces the risk of cross-infection.

Smoke-free King’s

We are a smoke-free hospital. Patients, visitors and staff are not permitted to smoke anywhere in the hospital or its grounds. This includes the use of e-cigarettes and vapes.

We offer help to quit to patients and visitors who want to stop smoking.

Feedback and assistance

If you have time, please fill in one of the comment forms that you will find around the hospital. We would like to hear what you think of King’s and what your visit was like.

If you have any questions about your relative’s or friend’s care or would like more information about the services we provide, you can contact our Patient Advice Liaison Service (PALS).

If you would like a quiet spot for reflection, you can visit our Sanctuary quiet room, St Luke’s Chapel, or the Muslim Prayer Room.