Deal agreed for new £8.2m medical centre

Plans for a new medical centre are moving forward after a deal was agreed between a council and the NHS.

The new facility in Greenhithe, Kent, will cost about £8.2m and will replace three "outdated" branch surgeries run by Temple Hill Group and the Swanscombe and Bean Partnership, Dartford Borough Council said.

The authority said the new Steele Avenue centre will better serve local people by offering a wider range of services in one accessible location.

The council has now agreed plans to work with NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board to deliver the project, with work expected to be finished before the end of 2027.

It is putting forward £3.6m of community infrastructure funds for the facility - which will be known as Greenhithe Medical Centre.

Council leader Jeremy Kite said: "By bringing services together in a purpose-built, modern setting, we're making it easier for people in Greenhithe and the surrounding area to access the care they rely on, in a building designed to support our communities now and in the years ahead.

"Our council is not normally responsible for healthcare delivery locally, but the truth is that without some action, this facility is unlikely to come forward and we are not the sort of council to standby and allow that to happen."

Ed Waller, chief strategy and partnerships officer at NHS Kent and Medway, said he was "delighted" to be working with the council.

"The new facility will support improved patient access and experience, expansion of the workforce and provide for a predicted growth in patient numbers in the area," he added.

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