Ipswich GP surgeries to get brick-and-mortar upgrades

The government recently announced plans to spend £102million on improving NHS clinics across the country. 

As a result, five sites in Ipswich, namely, Hawthorn Drive's Chantry Clinic, Ivry Street Medical Practice, Derby Road Practice, Cardinal Medical Practice and Pinewood Surgery are set to get brick-and-mortar upgrades. 

It is hoped that these upgrades will help deliver faster care for local patients. 

Ipswich MP Jack Abbott  (Image: Jack Abbott) Ipswich MP Jack Abbott said: “Residents in Ipswich tell me time and again how frustrating it is to face the dreaded ‘8am scramble’ just to get a GP appointment.

“With major upgrades to Hawthorn Drive Chantry Clinic, Ivry Street Medical Practice, Derby Road Practice, Cardinal Medical Practice, and Pinewood Surgery, this is the biggest investment GP facilities have seen in years."

Cardinal Medical Practice is in talks to convert the former Inkerman pub (Image: Shikhar Talwar)

Additionally, there are currently talks going on with Ipswich Borough Council about converting the former Inkerman pub on the corner of Norwich Road into an administrative centre with space for consulting rooms operated by the Cardinal Medical Practice.

The Cardinal Medical Practice is hoping to take over the pub, which has been closed for several years.

These plans were put in place after the proposals for a 'super surgery' at the Tooks site in north-west Ipswich were scrapped late last year.

The new surgery was expected to cost in the region of £8m and was planned for the junction of Old Norwich Road and Bury Road.

It was planned for the Cardinal Medical Practice, which has more than 27,000 registered patients and is the largest in Ipswich, to move into the new site.