Health centres could expand as new houses boost demand

Health centres across two towns could see a £1.5m investment as housebuilding increases demand for their services.

East Suffolk Council’s cabinet members will meet on 3 September to decide how to allocate the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) - money contributed by developers to improve local services.

Among the CIL bids are projects to expand the Haven Health Medical Centre (HHMC) and the Grove Medical Centre (GMC), both in Felixstowe, and the Cutlers Hill Health Centre (CHHC), in Halesworth.

If the schemes go ahead, it would mean more appointments and more consulting rooms.

The HHMC, in Grange Farm Avenue, could see CIL funding of £633,569 for an improved primary care centre and five new clinical rooms, reports the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

It could create up to 60 additional appointments per 1000 patients per week, as well as providing more teaching room for GP registrars and medical students.

At the GMC, in Grove Road, four rooms used by the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust and the county council would be converted into clinical accommodation.

An office would be divided and turned into a clinical room at one end and a telephone consultation and office at the other. The council has been asked for CIL funding of £61,641.

In Halesworth, the plans for the expansion of CHHC, in Bungay Road, would need £777,903.

The funding bid says it currently has 2,544 more patients registered than is optimal for a centre of its size.

Proposals include improved welfare facilities, four new consultation rooms, a healthcare assistant room, a utility area, and improved patient access.

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