Plans for new health and wellbeing hub in Shrewsbury as figures show rise in GP patient numbers across county

It comes as there have been concerns raised locally over access to GP surgeries, with health bosses responding that they are trying their "absolute best" to provide the safest and most appropriate care.

The British Medical Association has also called for a rapid expansion of the GP workforce across England, as the number of patients per practice hit a new national record.

Meanwhile, plans for a new health and wellbeing hub in Shrewsbury have emerged to pilot a new approach to providing services.

NHS Digital figures show 514,523 patients were registered at the 54 GP practices in the county, as of the end of June.

Although numbers differ between practices, it meant each GP team was dealing with an average of 9,528 patients each – up slightly from 9,419 in June 2020.

Telford MP Lucy Allan says many practices are still operating within the same restrictions as at the peak of the pandemic and GP services need to become more accessible again.

She says some patients have struggled with accessing online services and making contact by phone.

"This has made access to telephone appointments, advice from nurses and access to blood tests challenging and delayed," she added.

"It is the elderly and those most in need who are less able to push for access to care.

"Where care has been inaccessible, patients attend A&E, creating intense pressure on frontline staff and exacerbating delays for those with serious conditions."

Meanwhile, Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Clinical Commissioning Group is now calling on communities to share their views on a new proposed health and

wellbeing hub in Shrewsbury that could open in autumn 2024.

Claire Parker, director of partnerships at Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin CCG, said: “We will review everything that the community and our partners tell us about what matters most to them when they access local health and wellbeing services and their initial ideas on a health and wellbeing hub.

"We will then use this to inform our plans for the new hub."

Visit www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/ShrewsburyHealthandWellbeingHubListeningExercise or call 0121 611 0611 to offer feedback.

Across England, 60.8 million patients were registered at 6,571 facilities in June – equating to an average of 9,258 people per practice.

This was up 2.4 per cent on a year previously, and the highest figure since comparable quarterly records began in 2015.

The Department of Health and Social Care said the new Office for Health Promotion – to be launched later this year – will "level up the health of the nation" and close disparities.

A spokeswoman added: “We have invested £270 million to expand GP capacity, on top of the £1.5 billion for extra staff until 2023-24.

“The highest ever number of doctors accepted a place on GP specialty training in 2020 and we are committed to increasing the number of training places available to 4,000 a year, as well as targeting recruitment in hard-to-recruit areas."