Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Biggleswade Health Centre - Planning Appeal Hearin...":
Why is the Town Council still pursuing this when their very own Biggleswade Town Plan has this to say in the 'Health' table on page 30:
Community Services and Facilities Action Table Health
Issue: C12 The town centre is the favoured location of proposed new health surgery
Action(s):
1.Feed community views to the emerging Town Centre Masterplan and the NHS Bedfordshire.
2.NHS Bedfordshire to engage and consult with residents on finding a suitable location for proposed health surgery.
Priority:High/Medium
Partners:
- NHS Bedfordshire Health Centres
- Central Bedfordshire Council – Masterplan Team
- Biggleswade Town Council
The Town Council has (apparently from the Plan text) adopted the above and all the partners listed have 'signed up' to this.
Has NHS Bedfordshire changed its mind about the location for a new health centre for Biggleswade?
As it seems it's up to them where a new Health Centre goes (not the Town Council's responsibility) are they now supporting the TC on this proposed out of town centre location?
If not, why is the Town Council going against what was agreed?
And what is Central Beds' position on all of this - haven't they already refused the application more than once? So are they really saying 'we don't want to be a partner on this wild goose chase'?
Posted by Anonymous to Biggleswade OnLine at 11 October 2011 09:20
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Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Biggleswade Health Centre - Planning Appeal Hearin...":
B. Town Council hoping the revised application will be approved, as the overall area on the plans has been reduced. The opportunity to build health facilities in town has been missed in the past ie. old brewery site, old council offices. Bonds Lane is only being considered for retail (ie. land worth more money). A health facility of sorts needs to be in the town, with possibly a suplementary service of sorts elsewhere for minor ops, blood tests and suchlike. NHS have always said they want local people to decide where health centre to be situatated. The public transport infrastructure would have to improve considerably. One of the main reason the council are ignoring residents views, may be that the land is cheaper on the outskirts of the town.
Posted by Anonymous to Biggleswade OnLine at 11 October 2011 15:59
B. Town Council hoping the revised application will be approved, as the overall area on the plans has been reduced. The opportunity to build health facilities in town has been missed in the past ie. old brewery site, old council offices. Bonds Lane is only being considered for retail (ie. land worth more money). A health facility of sorts needs to be in the town, with possibly a suplementary service of sorts elsewhere for minor ops, blood tests and suchlike. NHS have always said they want local people to decide where health centre to be situatated. The public transport infrastructure would have to improve considerably. One of the main reason the council are ignoring residents views, may be that the land is cheaper on the outskirts of the town.
Posted by Anonymous to Biggleswade OnLine at 11 October 2011 15:59
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Background to health care provision.
Historically, health services such as community and hospital services have been commissioned via primary care trusts (PCTs). This way of arranging services meant that GPs on the front line, were removed from the process.
Proposed changes to the health system are outlined in the White Paper: Equity & Excellence: Liberating the NHS, published in July 2010. The White Paper gives responsibilty to GPs for commissioning health services on behalf of their patients.
The introduction of GP Commissioning Consortia, which are groups of GP practices who have joined together, means that the NHS and local GPs work in partnership to design a system that will enable local GPs to commission (buy) health services directly for their patients.
The Way forward.
NHS Cambridgeshire has launched the first two pilot GP Commissioning Consortia nationally, with the introduction of 'Hunts Health' and Borderline Commissioning Consortia'. The two Commissioning Consortia will be responsible for buying health care services for people living in the Huntingdonshire area and Yaxley and Whittllesey near Peterborough. Have no news on when the Bedfordshire Consortia will be fully in place.
Biggleswade Health Centre
At the Biggleswade Town Council meeting of 22nd February 2011, Dr Hollington and Christina Ward both of the Ivel Medical Centre, attended to provide their insight into the future for health facilities in Biggleswade.
The Primary Care Trust (PCT) will no longer be responsible for organising the facilities required, that is now the responsibility of the doctors. Representatives from The Health Centre and The Ivel Medical Centre will be meeting the Kings Reach Developer to explore the S106 agreement, which at present allows for a payment of monies and the provision of land. (£625,000 index linked and 0.5 hectare of land). Dr Hollington and Christina Ward said that area would not be enough for both surgeries but they were not particularly in favour of one centre. There are associated problems with accessing one large site.
Apparently all options are open but The Practices would not commit to Saxon Gate. The practices could develop individually although the Saffron Road, Health Centre was not as critical for space. There could be the possibility of a third practice, just for Kings Reach. There could be two or three sites and the practices share them.
The practices would need to get PCT approval to their proposals and would need to address the Biggleswade Town Council survey results that said the majority of respondents wanted a new health centre in the town. If that "box was not ticked" it would fail.
At the end of June 2011 Biggleswade Town Council decided to appeal against the Planning Application refusal.
As recently as September 2011, NHS Bedfordshire responded to the Biggleswade Town Council Consultant for the planning appeal and told them:
"It should be noted that NHS Bedfordshire did not object to the planning application in principle, but felt that the health care provision presented was not an ideal location. NHS Bedfordshire has always expressed a preference to retain within the town centre health care services.
Whilst it is acknowledged there are constraints with the current health care premises within the town, equitable access to appropriate health services for the community will be the main focus to ensure health needs are met."
Ownership of the Saxon Gate site
Central Bedfordshire District Council own the site and I understand they have their own plans for the site, which would not involve tarmacing it over for 300 space car park and building an enormous building on it.
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