A £9 million medical centre housed inside a 19th century Grade 2-listed former Cambrian Railway engineering shed in Shropshire will be one of the most unique health complexes in the country when it opens in May this year.
Joe O’Donnell, Director of Castlemead Developments, the commercial property firm which undertook the ground-breaking scheme for the Oswestry Medical Centre, said that it was a great example of what could be achieved when the private sector and public sector worked together.
Mr O’Donnell was able to give a positive progress report to Shropshire MP Owen Paterson during a visit to the site last Friday organised by Shropshire County Primary Care Trust.
The construction of a new £1.3 million access road in 2008 by regional development agency Advantage West Midlands was the trigger for Castlemead Developments to secure planning from Shropshire Council and start work on the medical centre in 2009.
When the 40,000 sq ft facility is completed, it will house the Cae Glas Surgery, a minor injuries service including X-ray facilities, a dental surgery, physiotherapy, podiatry, speech and language therapy services, a health promotions unit and advanced primary care services. Also, around 9,000 sq ft of office space for new businesses is being constructed and will be available to let.
Mr O’Donnell said: “We are on budget and on time to complete the building in May – and I firmly believe it will be one of the most unique and eye-catching health centre developments in the entire country.
“Placing a 21st century medical tech facility into the shell of a 19th century Grade-2 listed railway shed building is not something that happens every day.
“We are proud of our achievement so far and we hope that the local community will be proud of it – and it all came together thanks to team work between Shropshire County PCT, Advantage West Midlands, the local authorities and ourselves.”
Owen Paterson MP said: “I am very pleased that this important project is progressing. It will provide greatly improved healthcare for people in Oswestry and the surrounding area.”
Mark Pearce, Corporate Director at Advantage West Midlands, said: “Successful land and property projects that make a positive impact on the local economy and community don’t happen overnight.
“It has been our job to work with partners over the past 10 years and direct Government funding where it can achieve maximum impact. As a result, this part of Oswestry has been transformed for the better and I wish partners well for the future.”
The completion of the Oswestry Medical Centre in May will mark a decade of redevelopment at the former Cambrian Works complex and associated railway lands which in 2001 were semi-derelict and cut off from the rest of the town centre.
The first element of the scheme saw the purchase of the former station building with funding by AWM. Oswestry Borough Council turned the derelict building into a £2 million office, restaurant and shops with a new coach park in 2005.
In 2008, Advantage West Midlands funded the purchase of the former railway line and construction of a new access road.
The former railway sidings were redeveloped by Pickstock Homes into three-bed family homes and apartments in a scheme known as ‘The Carriages’.
Another five acres of land opened in July 2010 as the Wilfred Owen Green following a £170,000 landscape scheme by Shropshire Council.