A parish council has defended its position after objecting to plans for a new GP surgery being created within a former school building in Burton Joyce.
The Ivy Medical Group (IMG), which provides medical services on behalf of the NHS at Apple Tree Medical Practice and Lambley Lane Surgeries is on the hunt for a site to create a new surgery in the village.
The favoured option is the Old School Building in the village centre.
A parish council vote took place last Wednesday (23) with the majority of councillors against the decision to use the former school building.
Burton Joyce Parish Council has said it wants other sites in the village to be looked at before a final decision over the Old School Building is made.
Following the vote, a petition has been started by Trent Valley Councillors Sam Smith and Mike Adams and Gedling MP Tom Randall calling for the Parish Council to reverse their decision to ‘block’ plans for the new surgery at the Old School Building.
222 people have signed the petition so far.
In a joint statement, Cllrs Mike Adams, Cllr Sam Smith and Tom Randall MP said: “We’re disappointed to have been informed by Burton Joyce Parish Council that they voted to block £5m of investment for a new medical centre within the Old School Building site at the centre of Burton Joyce village.
“A few months ago, there was a well-attended public meeting where the Old School Building site was discussed. That meeting concluded with an agreement that the Parish Council and Ivy Medical Group engage in discussion. A working group was set up and meetings have taken place, which Cllr Sam Smith attended.
“During those meetings, a number of potential sites for a new medical centre were suggested and the NHS building designers investigated them (including land on Willow Wong). The only workable site within Burton Joyce for a new medical centre is to the side of the Old School Building. 78% of Ivy Medical Group’s 6,800 patients reside in Stoke Bardolph and Burton Joyce, many of whom are elderly and without transport, so building a new medical centre in the centre of Burton Joyce makes perfect sense”
Cllr Sam Smith, Cllr Mike Adams and Tom Randall MP added “Not only do these plans protect the facilities offered currently within the Old School site, they also enhance them with a car park, a community garden, a community room and a new medical centre all funded by the NHS. This could now result in this £5m healthcare investment being spent elsewhere and the potential loss of our local GP service in years to come.
“We therefore call upon the Parish Council to think again and allow parts of the Old School site to be developed into a medical centre.”
The Parish Council have now released a statement defending their decision.
In the statement they said they were ‘deeply concerned’ by the ‘inappropriate intervention’ from the Trent Valley Councillors and Tom Randall MP.
They said the intervention happened without any warning or consultation.
The council said: “A medical facility proposal for the village would be a significant decision that would permanently affect the centre of Burton Joyce.
“The Councillors’ and MP’s statement is pre-empting the conclusion of the site identification phase of work, applying inappropriate pressure on the locally elected members and the village to focus on just one site, The Old School Building and grounds. The initial proposal to the Parish Council was to bulldoze two historically significant buildings, which have now been altered to demolishing one, the Carnarvon Room, to make way for a 2.5 storey medical building.
“Despite frustrating attempts to engage from the start, we believed we were in a process now, that has not been concluded, of identifying potential sites for a new medical facility in the locality.
“Alternative sites have been identified for consideration, and we are awaiting a report back from the private sector design, build and operate consultants. These have not been discussed in the public domain to date because this assessment phase is sensitive to the owners of the land in question, a sensitivity not shown to the Parish Council.
The council said the Trent Valley Councillors’ and MP’s suggestion that they were blocking’ the investment is inflammatory and unhelpful.
Chair of the Parish Council, Cllr Laurence King told Gedling Eye “We welcome the increased public scrutiny that this campaign brings. We have deep concern regarding the consultation process and seeking the most appropriate outcome. We endeavour to be transparent, factual and raise awareness of the wider issues. Working together is essential for a positive outcome”.
The next meeting with IMG and the design and build consultant to review all options is due in mid-September.
You can sign the petition here: https://www.change.org/p/reverse-the-decision-to-reject-a-new-doctor-s-surgery-in-burton-joyce-village-centre
