Plans to build the centre in Coulsdon have been on the cards for around eight years, with the area suffering from the poorest health provision in the borough.
In a report published this week, Croydon Council revealed plans to finalise the deal with the local NHS group to build and pay for the new centre in Coulsdon Town.
Coulsdon’s new GP Health Centre will be built on the site of the old CALAT adult education centre car park
The £6.3m agreement would see the NHS provide the project funding, with minimal risk posed to Croydon’s own finances. A planning application was expected to be submitted by Friday (January 17).
The new centre will be built on the site of the car park formerly occupied by Coulsdon’s CALAT adult education centre on Malcolm Road.
Following CALAT’s closure in 2015, the council included the site in its second tranche of asset disposals, designed to address the council’s £1.4bn debt burden.
Plans for the new health centre first emerged in 2017, but it took until March 2024 before the council announced the sale of the car park site to the NHS for development.
Following the sale announcement, Croydon South MP and Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp promised residents work would begin on the site within months. However, Inside Croydon previously reported that the council had struck a deal with a local car dealership to use the car park for storage.
The 12-month contract with the dealership reportedly meant that cars would remain on the site until spring this year.
It is claimed this agreement has contributed to the delay in the health centre’s delivery.
Despite the delays, the plans continue to receive widespread support from community members, with many believing a new centre is long overdue.
The south of Croydon only has seven medical facilities compared to the 49 in the rest of the borough.
Since 2018, two GP practices have closed, leaving 5,000 affected patients to find an alternative GP.
There is a shortage of local GP provision in Coulsdon specifically with large patient lists and access issues.
As a result, 31 per cent of the patients are registered with a GP outside of Coulsdon.
The area also has the highest proportion of older residents in Croydon, with 4.6 per cent of people aged 65 and over-represented by those with dementia. It also has a high number of care homes.
Coulsdon has seen significant residential development over the past decade, leading to a sharp rise in the number of people seeking medical services.
Major projects include the 700-home scheme at Cane Hill, hundreds of flats at the former Pinewood Motors site on Leaden Hill, and the recently completed Station Approach development on the old Plumb Base site.
Additionally, the Brick by Brick scheme on Lion Green Road has delivered 157 flats across five blocks, alongside numerous smaller three-storey buildings with around nine flats scattered across the area.
The development site for the GP centre is at the heart of Coulsdon and is well-served by public transport, including the Coulsdon Town train station.
While a completion date has not yet been set, the Integrated Care Board, responsible for running NHS services locally, was seeking to submit a planning application for the centre on Friday (January 17).
They hope to gain consent by the end of March.
Following the announcement, Mr Philp told the LDRS: “I’ve been working for several years to bring this health centre to Coulsdon.
“It will provide vital new medical facilities for the town, where GP services are stretched. This centre will help make access to healthcare faster and easier for everybody.
“I’m going to continue working night and day to make this project happen.”
Croydon’s Mayor, Jason Perry, added: “I have been working closely with our partners at the NHS to secure a new GP health centre in Coulsdon and I’m delighted that we have reached this significant milestone.
“Whilst the process has taken longer than we would have liked, I remain committed to working with our partners to make sure that Coulsdon gets the health provision that it needs, for the benefit of our residents.”
