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Published: March 11, 2008
Developers of proposed Berrow Medical Centre to resubmit plans

Ambitious plans to build a new £2.5million medical centre at Berrow are to be updated and re-submitted by the developers behind the scheme after being temporarily withdrawn last week.

In a statement released on Tuesday morning (March 11th), the developers behind the plans said they "remain committed to the delivery of the new medical centre and will be seeking to work with the local planning authority over the next few weeks with a view to overcoming the outstanding issues that are hindering approval of the planning application."

As reported by Burnham-On-Sea.com last week, the planning application was withdrawn on Monday 3rd March after the applicants decided to temporarily pull the application to allow further information to be submitted to Sedgemoor District Council which they hope will demonstrate the proposals are able to overcome existing concerns.

The applicant will be submitting the additional information to local planners within the next few weeks with a view to demonstrating that the proposals would have no adverse impact on the local road network and will meet the policy requirements relating to flood risk.

The application proposals will be providing the local community with a new branch medical centre, pharmacy, elderly psychiatric day hospital (which will vastly improve the current facilities at Littlecourt) and a new dentist surgery in one new centre and will serve the population of Berrow and surrounding areas.

Dr Sampson, GP Partner at Burnham Medical Centre said: "There are no plans, either now or in the future, to move from our current site at Love Lane in Burnham-On-Sea."

"However, our premises have now reached 'bursting-point' and there is no room to expand further. We have, therefore, decided to build a Branch Surgery to serve our patients who live in the Berrow and Brean areas. Somerset Primary Care Trust are fully supportive of our plans to do this."

It will not replace Burnham Medical Centre in Love Lane, but will compliment and enhance existing services. This significant investment in healthcare provision within the area will provide additional facilities for the local community, particularly as the existing doctors surgery at Love Lane is struggling to cope with increasing patient numbers due to lack of space. It is anticipated that the revised application will be re-submitted by the end of March 2008.

It comes after district council planners raised concerns about the "intrusive design" of the proposed building, pictured, which was earmarked for Brent Road.

A Sedgemoor District Council planning spokesman told Burnham-On-Sea.com last week: "This substantial proposal includes a new medical centre and associated accommodation involving the relocation of facilities from their long-standing urban sites to a greenfield site away from their resident population and for which no special justification has been put forward."

"The erection of these large buildings of an intrusive design which is unsympathetic to the local vernacular and external materials, on an exposed site largely devoid of screening, would be out of character and at odds with the simple, small scale residential homes."

The council also had concerns about the proposed location of the property, on previously undeveloped land in an area deemed to be at risk from flooding.

In January, dozens of residents attended a meeting in Berrow Village Hall to hear more about the proposed Berrow Health Campus where the plans got a mixed reaction.

Burnham-On-Sea.com was first to unveil the proposals last summer when it was announced there are three elements to the scheme - an additional medical centre and pharmacy, a new elderly psychiatric day hospital to replace Berrow's Little Court; and a brand new NHS dentist.