Building work starts on Biddulph Primary Care Centre

The major phase of construction on a new £10million health centre in Biddulph gets underway this week.

The state-of-the-art building, which was commissioned by NHS North Staffordshire, is being developed through the Prima 200 LIFT partnership with private sector partner Prime plc to accommodate 21,000 patients from Biddulph and the surrounding areas, bringing much needed, improved health services into the heart of the town.

Preliminary work has already taken place to prepare the site and major ground work will now begin, with completion of the new centre anticipated in spring 2013.

As well as offering purpose built accommodation for two local GP practices, the new four-storey building, designed in consultation with the community by healthcare design specialists, One Creative Environments Ltd, will provide a range of additional services such as podiatry, district nursing, pharmacy, chronic disease management, minor ailment centre, midwifery and counselling. One of the centre’s rooms will also be available for out-of-hours use by community groups.

North Staffordshire company, Seddon Construction, has been appointed as the main contractor.

Bob Smaylen, Development Director at Prime plc said: “We are delighted to have reached the next phase in the development of the new Biddulph Primary Care Centre. The building represents important local investment within the town centre, improving access to better health services for residents throughout the community.”

Maureen Turfrey, project manager for NHS North Staffordshire, commented: “We are very pleased to have reached this important milestone which means that major building work can now begin. Biddulph Primary Care Centre will greatly improve the provision of healthcare facilities in the town and better meet the health needs of local residents on their doorstep.”

As well as contributing significantly to local regeneration, the development also incorporates a range of green features in pursuit of the Building Research Establishment’s Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) Excellent rating. Solar PV and solar thermal panels on the roof will contribute to the building’s electricity and heating, whilst the design allows for maximum daylight in all rooms, reducing reliance on electricity.

Steve Hance, Designer, One Creative Environments Ltd, added: “Biddulph Primary Care Centre’s contemporary design is inspired by the local area and thanks to collaboration with community and healthcare professionals throughout the design stages, we are confident the centre will become an important new landmark for Biddulph, as well as a valued health facility.”