Plans for second new GP hub set to be built in Sheffield cancelled

Mike Speakman, programme manager for the NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board, said that the decision to withdraw had been a tough one for the Upwell Street Surgery, which had been due to relocate to a joint hub on Rushby Street, Fir Vale with Page Hall Surgery.

As they had decided the plan would not work for them, the proposal involving the Foundry group of GPs will not now go forward. The Foundry 2 plan had been due to be built with £9.07m of government funding.

It is the second plan that has been halted. The decision was taken earlier this year not to relocate Firth Park Surgery and Shiregreen Medical Centre to a proposed health centre at Concord Leisure Centre. That was rejected by the majority of patients at both surgeries.

The plans both formed part of a £37m rebuilding programme that the integrated health board previously said gives a “once in a generation opportunity to improve healthcare for people in Sheffield”.

The programme will still include creating a city centre hub by converting the old Royal Bank of Scotland building on on Church Street, which will replace the PCS City and PCS Mulberry GP practices on Mulberry Street, both run by Primary Care Sheffield.

The Foundry group will still move Burngreave Surgery and Sheffield Medical Centre to a new centre on Spital Street, Burngreave. The SAPA group of GPs are relocating the Health Care Surgery, Buchanan Road Surgery and Margetson Surgery to a new centre on Wordsworth Avenue, Parson Cross.

A meeting of Sheffield City Council’s health scrutiny sub-committee (December 21) was told by Mr Speakman that the Upwell Street Surgery had weighed up the pros and cons and decided he plan would not work.

He said: “We’re very disappointed that we’re not able to proceed with the Foundry 2 scheme” and added that the NHS board will be holding talks with Page Hall Surgery to look at the implications of the decision.

In response to a question from Lucy Davies of Healthwatch Sheffield, Richard Kennedy, NHS board head of involvement, said that the decision is already being communicated to patients. Briefings being made to community organisations are intended to let the wider local community know.

Ms Davies also asked if there was any scope for future investment at Page Hall. Mr Speakman said it was too soon to say but it was more likely to come from additional funding rather than the current programme.

He added: “We will do all we can to secure investment but it’s very early stages.”

The meeting also got an update about the city centre hub, which had been delayed initially in finding a suitable building. A planning application has now been submitted and advice taken about converting the listed bulding.

Mr Speakman said that work is due to start in August 2024 and end by March 2025. The new-build centres will take longer to complete.

James Martin of Disability Sheffield submitted written questions to the meeting about what has happened on involving people with disabilities in co-designing the GP hubs.

Mr Speakman’s written response said: “We fully support and welcome the input of stakeholders in determining and shaping design parameters when we reach this stage of design. Timescales for each scheme will be different but this can be expected to commence from around February 2024.”