The Hope House Centre will provide a new homefor the town’s Hope House GP surgery and children’s centre as well as offering a range of other services such as minor operations, chronic disease management and family planning. It will also offer physiotherapy, a diabetes prevention programme and counselling services which local people would otherwise need to travel to further afield to access.
From Monday, 18th July, all face-to-face appointments will take place at the new centre which is situated at 10 Waterloo Road, Radstock, BA3 3EP.
There will be on-site parking for patients, as well as dedicated disabled parking spaces and a bike rack next to the entrance.
The centre has received £2.4 million from the NHS England and NHS Improvement Estates and Technology Transformation Fund as well as £4.3 million of investment from Hope House Surgery, Bath and North East Somerset Council, Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and the Radstock and Westfield Big Local.
The Hope House Centre incorporates a Community Health and Wellbeing space supported by the Radstock and Westfield Big Local Partnership, with a Big Local grant administered on behalf of the Big Lottery Fund. This space will allow for local voluntary organisations such as Bath Mind and Southside family project to provide additional mental health support, as well as space for child and parent groups, exercise programmes, family support, general health improvement programmes and a meeting area for the local community.
Dr Bryn Bird, Locality Clinical Lead for Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire CCGsaid: “We’re absolutely delighted that the new Hope House Centre will be opening. The centre will offer local residents a wide range of health and wellbeing services under one roof and reduce the need to travel further afield.
“The new centre will offer truly integrated services, bringing health care, children’s services and health and wellbeing support for the people of Radstock together in one purpose built, easy to access building.”
Stephanie Coombs, Practice Manager for Hope House Surgery said: “Hope House Centre will allow us to continue to provide general practice services to the growing local population and to develop further enhanced services for our community.
“We know that being able to offer a range of services under one roof is really important and will deliver a number of health benefits to our population from an easily accessible location in the centre of Radstock.
“Existing patients of Hope House Surgery in Radstock will not need to re-register and will be able to access services and appointments as usual.”
Bath & North East Somerset Council will fund the part of the building that will house the children’s centre.
Councillor Dine Romero, Bath & North East Somerset cabinet member for Children and Young People, Communities, said: “Bringing these services together in one fantastic new building helps improve people’s lives for both the residents using the Hope House Centreand for the staff delivering services from it. It’s a much-needed and very welcome investment.”
Robin Moss, Chair of Radstock and Westfield Big Local CIC said: "One of the key questions asked by Big Local is 'how can we help to improve the health of our local residents?' This financial support for the new Hope House Centre and our partnership with the local GP practice is an important part of the answer."