Exclusive by Peter Kitchen
A town centre medical practice will be included in the multi-million pound Barker Street development along with a supermarket, chemists and apartments, the Chronicle can exclusively reveal.
Staff at Riverside Medical Practice in Smithfield Road, Shrewsbury, have been seeking a new home for the past decade as their existing facilities are too small.
But now the centre will be given prime space in a new building on the former S1 bus stop, which will also include apartments and space for Claremont Baptist Church.
Negotiations over the relocation of the surgery have been ongoing between Morris Property and Shropshire County Primary Care Trust for the past few months.
No firm timescale nor costs have been confirmed, but medical practice manager Martin Cousins said he hoped to make the move by late 2010.
Mr Cousins said it was planned the ground floor of the new building would accommodate an unnamed supermarket, a chemist, the church and an area for the medical practice reception.
The first and second floors would be used by the medical practice, the third floor would house PCT services and the fourth floor would include apartments.
The surgery has more than 12,000 patients and has eight partners, two assistants, a registrar, four nurses, a healthcare assistant and medical students working from 10 clinical rooms.
Mr Cousins said: “We have been bursting at the seams and we are really pleased. A lot depends on when and if planning permission is gained, but it will take 12 months to build and we are hoping to move in by late 2010.”
Robin Morris, of Morris and Company, said: “We can confirm Morris Property has been working together with the Shropshire County Primary Care Trust (PCT) and the Riverside Medical Practice and has drawn up plans for a new development on Barker Street to incorporate a medical centre and will shortly be submitting a planning application.”
Liz Welsh, interim head of primary care for Shropshire County PCT, said: “We have agreed in principle a proposal for the redevelopment of Riverside Medical Practice.
“The PCT is now awaiting a formal business case to be submitted from the medical practice for final approval.”