Work begins on £11m care centre
Construction work will commence on Meir Primary Care Centre on Friday after final approval was given to Stoke-on-Trent Primary Care Trust, local improvement finance trust Prima 200 and developer Prime.
The Stoke-on-Trent-based centre, which is due to be completed in November next year, will cost £11m to build.
The new four-storey building, located on the site of the former King’s Arms Pub on Weston Road, will replace the current Meir Health Centre and serve up to 18,000 patients. Eighteen new healthcare jobs will be created at the centre.
Purpose-built accommodation for six local GP practices will be created at the development and one of the rooms will be available for out-of-hours use by community groups.
In acknowledgment of the site’s former use, the rear courtyard garden features the stone effect coat-of-arms that adorned the entrance to the King’s Arms, while a carved wooden crest from the pub will be displayed in the health centre’s main waiting area.
Developers said that the centre will incorporate a range of green features in order to achieve the Building Research Establishment’s Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) Excellent rating. Fifteen per cent of the centre’s energy needs will be met by renewable sources such as solar energy and air source heat pumps.
The new health centre is expected to open in November 2011.
Steve Sprackling, development director at Worcester-based Prime, said: “This striking new centre is a significant regeneration project and will act as an important focal point for the local community as well as offering enhanced health services. Achieving financial close means we can begin construction in early October and achieve the PCT opening date of November 2011.”
