Havant MP Alan Mak officially opened the new Emsworth Medical Centre on October 7th. A number of key guests involved in the project attended a short ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The new surgery has been built on the site of the former Victoria Cottage Hospital on the other side of the A27, a very short walk from the previous building in North Street.
A £3.5m scheme involved redeveloping the derelict hospital site with some new build, but internally the building has been transformed to a health setting fit which provides light, spacious rooms for GPs, staff and patients.
The GP partners at Emsworth worked closely with NHS Hampshire, Southampton and the Isle of Wight Clinical Group, NHS Property Services, other partners - particularly the community - to select the site for their new home.
Hampshire LIFT Limited was appointed to oversee the design and construction of the project on behalf of the CCG and the GPs, with NHS Property Services acting as landlord.
Contractors Mountjoy started on-site in January 2020 for what was expected to be a 12 month construction period - but the COVID-19 pandemic led to delays caused in part by a shortage of building material and the need for various contractors to socially distance themselves whilst working.
Mr Mak said:
“After working to deliver Emsworth’s new GP surgery since 2015 alongside the local community and healthcare partners, I am delighted that NHS funding has now enabled the new medical practice to open.”
Dr Abu Chinwala, a GP Partner at Emsworth Medical Practice, said:
“Our previous site was not purpose-built and we outgrew it long ago, as the population of Emsworth has grown and our number of registered patients has expanded so greatly over the years. The new building has exceeded our expectations. Our staff love it and I’m sure our patients do too.”
Sara Tiller, Managing Director (South Est Hampshire) for NHS Hampshire, Southampton and Isle of Wight Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), was thrilled that the long story to find the best possible site for the replacement surgery had had such a ”great ending.”
Adam Shepheard, NHS Property Services’ Principal Construction Manager for the South East, said:
“We are delighted that the new GP surgery is now serving the patients of Emsworth. It has been a pleasure to work alongside the CCG and the GP partners to transform a local landmark building into a state-of-the-art medical practice for the community.”
The scheme has been funded by NHS England through an Estates, Technology and Transformation fund grant. It included demolishing single-storey outbuildings, providing a new rear single-storey extension to the main building, installing a new lift shaft, roofing and canopy construction, complete reconfiguration of g rooms, and extensive internal and external decorations.
