Yorkshire village's medical centre set for £750,000 expansion due to growing population

Selby District councillors are being asked to approve the sum for Beech Grove Medical Centre in Sherburn in Elmet, which would go towards an extension and new floor to the building, providing five extra consulting rooms and three additional treatment rooms, as well as improving the existing facilities.

Sherburn is growing rapidly as a result of significant new housing and employment developments in recent years and there is a proven need for more healthcare provision, council documents state.

The current surgery building was built in the mid-1970s, when the patient list size was around 4,000 patients.

Since then, it has increased to more than 10,000 patients, with only minor alterations being made, with the list set to increase by another 5,000.

The cash comes from the council’s Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), funds generated from development in Sherburn and the wider district.

The council has sought legal advice in relation to the proposal, as giving money to GP surgeries could be considered a subsidy or state aid to private individuals.

The council report states: “However, in this instance what is being funded is actually improvements to the asset that a healthcare provider uses to provide services to the National Health Service.”

Selby District council’s executive is being urged to approve the proposal, which received planning permission in October, as it would allow the surgery to secure £1m it has also received from the NHS for the extension.

The report adds: “[The practice] state[s] without this financial support the project is untenable. NHS funding is dependent on the project commencing this financial year. Inadequate premises are a barrier to recruiting GPs in the future.”

It is hoped construction could start in spring 2022.