21st September 2023
Patients of Attleborough Surgeries will soon be seeing the benefits of extra space at Station Road Surgery after planning permission has been received for a new modular extension to the practice.
Historically the practice’s 21 clinical rooms have operated at full capacity, providing little flexibility for growth in clinical services. The new extension will increase the surgery’s clinical capacity, providing an additional six clinical rooms for general medical services to be provided to the surgery’s 18,860 patients, as well as providing additional administrative space.
General medical services are provided by a range of healthcare professionals who are employed to respond to patient needs. The extension will enable the Practice to be able to take up new opportunities to extend staffing numbers and services for patients as new funding and local health programmes become available, including First Contact Practitioners, Mental Health Practitioners, and diabetic eye screening services.
This additional space will mean the Practice can ensure that existing staff can work more effectively in purpose-built clinical space, and future recruitment and retention will be supported as appropriate space will be available to offer staff joining the Practice.
The extension will be a portable building linked to the surgery. It will be fully accessible and digitally enabled, allowing the practice staff and patients to move easily between the main surgery building and the new extension to deliver services in the additional clinical space.
The development is seen as essential by the practice to support patient needs for healthcare now, and to provide space for the practice to grow services in line with the planned residential growth in the area.
Practice Manager Lucy McLean said “There has been a pressing need for growth in our primary care facilities for a number of years as demand for general medical services is increasing, and patient numbers also increasing as our local community continues to grow.
The partners at Attleborough Surgeries are delighted to be able to progress with this development to help increase patient access to services and improve patient experience in the short term. Looking ahead, the Practice will also be continuing to work with system partners across the Integrated Care System to develop a longer-term solution for Primary Care services in Attleborough.”
Now that planning permission has been received, work on the modular building extension is planned to proceed later this month, with works expected to be completed by early November. The extension is planned to be open and ready for patient use from mid November 2023.