GPs joined councillors, contractors and Tom Tugendhat MP for the ‘topping out’ of a new medical centre in Tonbridge this week.
Doctors from Tonbridge Medical Group got the chance to look down over the site as construction reached its highest point.
The new centre will have a range of consulting and treatment rooms, a self-contained minor procedures and treatment suite, a pharmacy, and an ambulance bay.
It will enable Tonbridge Medical Group to better serve the growing list of patients who currently use its ageing Pembury Road and Higham Lane sites, which don’t have the space needed and currently limit the services the GP practice can provide.
The new centre will be less reliant on fossil fuels than the old buildings, generating much of its own power via solar panels on the roof and using measures such as air-source heat pumps to help reduce running costs.
Senior partner at the Tonbridge Medical Group, Dr Tim Palmer, said: “It’s fantastic to finally be able to see our new facility taking form – especially from such a high vantage point.
“We’re really looking forward to welcoming the first patients to the new centre later this year – after so long, we will finally have the space we need to offer our patients a wider range of services all in one place.”
Construction of the centre, which began in June 2019, is expected to be completed later this year.
Supported in NHS West Kent Clinical Commissioning Group’s GP Estates Strategy, the new medical centre is being built by Folkestone-based contractor, Jenner, and is being funded by specialist primary care property company, Assura, which will be the building’s long-term owner.
AAssura’s senior development manager, Jon Webb, said: “Topping out is always a very special milestone to reach and we’re delighted that so many of the people who’ve helped to create the facilities of the future for Tonbridge patients were here to share it.
“The social impact of this much-needed new community facility is going to be positive and far-reaching.”
