Last updated at 16:40, Tuesday, 23 October 2012

NO site has yet been identified for a new community health centre in Barrow.

Plans for a new health centre have been approved by NHS Cumbria and a number of sites will be examined.

Over three years have passed since the plans for a new community health hub in Barrow were first mooted.

An NHS Cumbria spokeswoman said: “A strategic outline case to provide new modern primary care buildings for GP and community services in Furness has now been approved by the Furness Locality and NHS Cumbria.

“No one site has yet been identified and the process involves looking at a shortlist of possible building sites for the new health premises and will also identify which GP surgeries wish to move to new modern health facilities.

“Once these plans have been developed they will be discussed with patients and the general public before any concrete arrangements are decided on.

“The main aim of this project is to provide the people of Furness with the best health services possible which will be modern and flexible to meet the increasing number of health services which are delivered in communities closer to where people live.”

Plans for a health centre in Holker Street were recently resubmitted to Barrow Borough Council.

The proposals for a new community health centre on the site of the former Kwik Save supermarket were initially given the go-ahead in December 2009.

Barrow pharmacists chain JN Murray Ltd held talks at the time with a number of interested parties, including the primary care trust. However, three years on no site has yet been confirmed by the NHS for the centre.

The council agreed to the build on the condition the centre will only operate between 7am and 11pm on weekdays and 8am until 8pm on Saturdays.

Managing director of JN Murray, Jonathan Hartley, said the plans had been resubmitted because the company did not want the planning permission that was granted to expire.

He said: “We made an application three years ago and now it is set to expire.

“We considered that the sensible thing to do was to resubmit it, so the plans didn’t die.”

Mr Hartley added that there had been no developments in the plans for a surgery in Holker Street.

Cumbria’s lead GP Dr Geoff Joliffe said the new centre would benefit the town as it would act as a “one-stop shop” for people.

bHe said: “We are close to sorting it out, choosing the site is only one part of it.

“The most important thing is that the design is right and the facility is right.

“We want to offer different services from the one building, things like getting different physicians under the same roof.”

First published at 16:20, Tuesday, 23 October 2012
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk