'Disheartened' Wixams residents told no GP surgery by 2025

Wixams opened in 2009 but there is still no GP surgery for residents

A parish council has said it is "disheartened" that the NHS cannot guarantee a new doctor's surgery by 2025.

Wixams near Bedford opened in 2009 and has 3,000 homes, but no GP practice.

On Friday, the local NHS board said it could not commit to a new healthcare premises by 2025, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The developer said it had already provided the "necessary funding for [a] primary care facility".

More than half of residents are forced to make a 14-mile round trip to GPs in Ampthill, according to Saqhib Ali, chairman of Wixams Parish Council.

"We are disheartened that the funding package has not been released," he said.

"I heard of an older lady who spent seven hours travelling on public transport to Ampthill and back to see a doctor."

Wixams resident Rebecca Birtwell is registered blind and has to travel to Ampthill to visit a doctor

Wixams Surgery Action Group presented a petition of more than 2,000 signatures - calling for a GP surgery in the new town - to the Bedfordshire, Luton & Milton Keynes Integrated Care Board (ICB) on Friday.

Dean Westcott, chief finance officer for the ICB, said: "We understand the strength of feeling in Wixams about access to health care."

He said the ICB continued to work with the developer to secure planning permission but that running a surgery had to be "affordable".

"This is not the case at the current time and we are therefore unable to commit to having new healthcare premises available by 2025," added Mr Westcott.

Chairwoman of Wixams Surgery Action Group Barbara Matthews presented a petition with more than 2,000 signatures.

Mr Westcott said the ICB was taking action to "improve" primary care capacity in the surgeries Wixams residents travelled to.

"This includes recruiting more GPs and other expert clinicians, investing in the extension and improvement of premises," he said.

"Central Bedfordshire Council, Bedford Borough Council and the NHS are working closely together to seek a viable financial solution for the community."

But action group chairwoman Barbara Matthews said the ICB's response was "disappointing, with no concrete plans for a new surgery to be up and running anytime soon".

She added that the promise to increase capacity elsewhere "doesn't resolve the problems many Wixams residents have in travelling to those surgeries, especially for those people who don't drive and rely on an inadequate bus service".

Adrian Clack, managing director of developer L&Q Estates, said: "We have provided considerable investment in local community facilities and amenities, and we are committed to ensuring the wellbeing of the local community and the success of the development overall.

"We have already provided the necessary funding for primary care facility and are currently working with the local authorities to identify a site in the town centre for its delivery."

Bedford Borough Council and Central Bedfordshire Council were also contacted for comment.