Plans for new GP surgery alongside homes submitted
LDRSA new medical centre and dozens of homes could be built in an Oxfordshire town.
South Oxfordshire District Council is considering plans to build 65 homes and a new centre to replace an existing GP surgery which is "no longer fit for purpose".
Berkeley Homes (Oxford and Chiltern) Limited submitted the application to the council for the land north of A4130 Wallingford Bypass.
The site forms part of Berkeley Homes' ongoing 502-home development at Winterbrook Meadows, which is walking distance from Wallingford town centre and the River Thames.
The medical centre would replace the existing Wallingford Medical Practice off Reading Road, which has an "acute need for expansion" due to the increasing population.
The developers' design and access statement said: "The existing facility is significantly undersized and includes outdated facilities which do not comply with current NHS guidance and are no longer fit for purpose.
"With an expanding population and increased pressure on primary care in general practice the practice is seeking to develop a new building from which to provide services."
It also said the new facility would be "future-proofed" by increasing capacity to meet present and future demand, would have dedicated parking for staff and patients, and be more energy efficient to decrease running costs.
The homes would be a mixture of one to five bedroom houses all at market value.
The developer's planning statement added the proposal "represents exceptional circumstances and public benefits to justify no physical provision of affordable housing on or off site".
The first phase of homes on the Winterbrook Meadows development have been completed and welcomed its first residents in February.
Wallingford's town mayor Ros Lester previously said the medieval town had enough developments for now and its infrastructure may struggle to cope.
A consultation on the plans closes on 23 July.
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