New Telford GP surgery to open next week

Patients attending appointments at Shawbirch Medical Centre will be welcomed at the practice’s new base from Monday.

The practice is moving from its current site at Acorn Way, Shawbirch, where it has been based for the last 30 years.

The new site is half a mile away, at Brandon Avenue, off Shawbirch Road, Admaston.

Over recent years, the surgery has had to reduce the range of extra services it could offer at the Acorn Way site to allow more GP appointments to be held.

Although the Acorn Way site had been extended twice to cope with the growth in patient numbers, it was not possible to extend further and a new building was the only alternative.

The new medical centre provides a greater number of consulting rooms and what the the practice says will be a "significantly improved patient experience".

Dr Paul Davies, the partner leading the project said: “The partners became aware that moving to a new location was the only solution to enable the practice to meet the increasing number of patients in our locality that prefer to register with our practice.

"The site at Acorn Way would not have coped with the growth in the number of local households particularly with three large housing developments under way or close to starting nearby.”

Greg Smith, chair of the practice’s Patient Participation Group (PPG) said: “The partners have regularly attended our quarterly PPG meetings and updated attendees about their plans and progress. Patients will be delighted to see the new medical centre come into operation”.

Ruth Waldendorf, the practice manager said: “Our telephone number, opening hours, and website address will not change. We look forward to welcoming the first patients to attend for their appointments at the new centre from Monday, July 25."

Construction of the new medical centre began in April last year and was completed recently.

Staff have been testing systems and preparing for the move since the keys were handed over earlier this month.