Works on £3.4m Staffordshire healthcare facility progress

Works are moving along well at the new Greenwood House Medical Centre on Lichfield Road in Burntwood, Staffordshire, and an event was held last month to mark the progress of the project.

The £3.4million medical facility, which is being constructed by Midlands contractor G F Tomlinson, is due for completion in September 2021 and will bring first class healthcare facilities to the community to relieve the pressure on local hospitals.

The new single storey centre is being constructed on a site previously occupied by a residential care home, which has been vacant since 2008.

The centre will replace the current provision on Hudson Drive, approximately 300 metres away from Greenwood House, with medical services still being provided by the Darwin Medical Practice from within the new facility.

Consisting of 12 consulting rooms, five treatment rooms, a healthcare and phlebotomy room, and a health education space with an adjoining pharmacy unit, the Greenwood House Medical Centre will provide much-needed upgraded and accessible healthcare facilities for the area.

There will also be 61 onsite parking spaces created and surroundings will be landscaped, with the centre using the existing road entrance for the former care home.

The site progress event for the Greenwood Medical Centre was held onsite on 22nd June and delegates from partners involved in the project attended, including Staffordshire County Council, Entrust, The Darwin Practice, CCG and G F Tomlinson the main contractors.

G F Tomlinson was selected from the Staffordshire County Council Framework to provide the construction works for the site which began in November last year, this being their fifth project secured on the framework.

The scheme has been funded by NHS England’s Estates and Technology Transformation Fund, which aims to improve healthcare services for patients across the country with modernised facilities and technology.

Works onsite are taking shape, with the centre’s steel frame and new car park constructed first to enable staff parking and material storage, minimising disruption to local residents.

Works to the drainage, render, masonry and curtain walling are all complete, with work underway on decoration and ceiling and floor finishes which will allow for the installation of radiant panels and lighting to commence. The electrical and mechanical installation is also nearing completion.

Chris Flint, director of G F Tomlinson, said: “This important project is progressing as planned and will see new, modern and spacious healthcare facilities delivered to the local community.

“Recent months have highlighted how vital accessible healthcare services are for communities, and with an ageing population, Burntwood’s current facilities were inadequate and unable to meet public demand.

“We are pleased to be working alongside Staffordshire County Council once again to deliver another crucial public service building to the area, providing local residents with access to excellent healthcare. We look forward to seeing the project reach completion later this year.”

Alan White, Leader of Staffordshire County Council, said: “Part of the strategy for reducing demand on our hospitals from ageing communities is to provide more facilities and services in the community and we have always earmarked this council-owned site for use to benefit the people of Burntwood.

“This will be a first-class health centre on the community’s doorstep and it will make a huge contribution to residents’ health and wellbeing, as well as supporting older people’s independence.”

Dr Gerbo Huisman, GP partner at Darwin Medical Practice, said: “I am delighted that years of collaborative working and planning between skilled and dedicated professionals from local health authorities, the county council and The Darwin Medical Practice are now coming to fruition.

“Our patients, as well as the wider community, are now getting what they have asked for so long; a modern, spacious and comfortable health centre from which we, their GP practice, will be delivering high quality, responsive and patient centred primary care services.”

Lynn Miller, director of care for the NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent CCGs, said: “This will be a fantastic health centre for the people of the area and is a great example of the NHS working with our local authority partners in an integrated way.

“This centre is specifically tailored for the new multi-disciplinary teams we are building in primary care, with GPs supported by a range of other highly skilled professionals including Advanced Nurse Practitioners, Clinical Pharmacists, First Contact Physiotherapists and Social Prescribers.”

Staffordshire County Council is leading this project, with project management from ENTRUST, G F Tomlinson acting as main contractor, CPMG as architect and Jackson Purdue as structural engineer.