The current practice on Whitchurch Road has a cramped waiting area, poor disabled access and struggles to maintain patient confidentiality levels.
RESIDENTS in Gabalfa will find out next week whether the go-ahead has been given for a new GP surgery to be built after a decade of discussions.
Approval is expected to be given for the immediate construction of a centre on Sachville Avenue, which would replace the nearby practice on Whitchurch Road and provide facilities for the growing local population.
A new practice in the area has been under consideration for some time and planning permission was granted for a similar application from healthcare property group MedicX on the same site in 2014. However construction never commenced due to various issues including funding.
The company behind the new plans, Assura PLC, are one of the United Kingdom’s leading healthcare real estate investors and have 56 Welsh health centres in their portfolio already, including one in Radyr.
The response to the plans from local residents has been largely positive, as many believe that the current facilities at Whitchurch Road Surgery are inadequate.
Gabalfa Councillor Ashley Wood said: “The current medical centre is an old building and not really fit for purpose. It is difficult to access for disabled patients and is over its intended capacity. It’s been a real issue for a number of years.”
Located in a converted 1800s three-storey terraced house, Whitchurch Road Surgery currently serves over 8,000 patients, meaning that there are too few consulting rooms, a waiting area which is cramped and minimal parking. The building also fails to meet Care Quality Commission standards, is not Equality Act compliant and it struggles to maintain patient confidentiality levels.
In contrast, the plans for the new centre propose a spacious reception area, consulting rooms, treatment rooms, ancillary rooms and a pharmacy, as well as “a clear and secure line between public and private spaces”. There is also hope that new jobs will be created, either through the pharmacy or in clinical and administrational positions.
The site on Sachville Avenue, less than 200m away from Whitchurch Road Surgery, is vacant overgrown contaminated allotment land that has not been used since the mid-1990s and has become a location for fly-tipping and other anti-social behaviour.
However there are some concerns from the Flaxland Avenue Allotments Committee, who are responsible for current active patches on the same site.
Writing in a letter to Cardiff Council, the committee’s chair John Deering said that they were “disappointed” to have only become aware of the plans “indirectly” considering the nature of the application.
Mr Deering also highlighted concerns over drainage, sewage, security and disruption to the Flaxland Allotments during construction.
Councillor Wood said: “Perhaps due to the situation with Covid, I don’t think there’s been the necessary consultation with the Flaxland Allotment Committee and residents. We hope that the concerns that have been raised will be able to be addressed as part of the [construction] process.
“Since the letter of concern [from the allotment committee] was submitted to the council, I have seen a response from the developer saying that they are willing to discuss the issues raised. That’s certainly a positive.”
Along with plans for the GP surgery, Assura PLC has also submitted an application to remediate a portion of the contaminated allotment land, which is four times the size of the proposed medical centre plot, therefore increasing the amount of allotment space available to local residents.
An Assura PLC spokesman said: “The work needed to bring the allotment land back into use is extensive and we would hope to start this as soon as possible. We’re keen to work with the community through this work to build connections between primary care and allotment/gardening projects for health.”
Assura PLC has emphasised that, if approved, the plans will not fall by the wayside like those submitted by MedicX six years ago.
A spokesman said: “This is among the primary care infrastructure projects backed by Welsh Government funding as announced in 2017, and Assura is ready to move the scheme to construction phase pending a green light from Cardiff City Council.”
A decision on the planning application is expected by Tuesday, December 8. If approved, building work would begin in January 2021 and be ready to open to patients in spring 2022. The application can be found here.
