To all patients of the Wadhurst Medical Group
Dear Patient,
We are writing to inform you about an upcoming change to our services in Ticehurst.
Wadhurst Medical Group has two sites - one in Wadhurst and a branch surgery in Ticehurst at Newington Court, which is owned by Southern Housing.
Southern Housing is planning a major development of the site, to provide much-needed affordable housing in the area. Results from a recent Fire Risk Survey have showed that significant rebuilding of the block housing the surgery would be required to meet safety compliance requirements.
The extensive work, combined with the substantial financial investment needed, means refurbishment is no longer a viable option. Therefore, the decision has been made to clear the site and rebuild, subject to planning permission.
We have therefore made the difficult decision to close the Ticehurst Surgery and permanently locate the services together on one site at Wadhurst Medical Centre to ensure the long-term safety and wellbeing of our patients, staff, and community.
We plan to do this in the spring of next year. This will give us time to make some changes at our main site in Wadhurst so that we can continue to provide the full range of services. No staffing reductions will be made as part of this process and the relocation will enable us to consolidate our resources on a single site, giving us greater resilience.
Although the current Ticehurst building does not meet compliance requirements in the longer term, our fire teams have agreed that, with some additional precautions, it is acceptable to use it for the short term. It is therefore safe for patients to visit the surgery until alternative arrangements are made.
Whilst the reasons for the move are outside our control, we intend to use this as an opportunity to consolidate our team and services and invest in the Wadhurst premises to improve the quality of the environment there.
We understand that you may have some comments and concerns about these changes. If you have any questions or queries, please get in contact – preferably using the contact details below:
• Email: sxicb-esx.patientfeedback.wmg@nhs.net
• Voicemail: 01892-577730
We will use your comments and feedback to review our plans and will summarise the key messages and any actions that we will take as a result.
We apologise for any concern this may cause and appreciate the understanding of our patients and local community. We are committed to maintaining the current level of service at Wadhurst for the village.
Online access to services is available via the practice website.
For further information, please see below.
Yours sincerely
Wadhurst Medical Group