New health hub to open at former Stockton shopping centre

The NHS centre will sit at the southern end of the former shopping centre site

A new high street NHS centre offering rapid tests for cancer and heart and lung disease will open on the site of an old town centre shopping centre.

Stockton Borough Council has approved plans for the centre, which will house a range of equipment including MRIs, and CT, X-ray and ultrasound scanners.

Work is expected to start soon at the site of the Castlegate Shopping Centre.

It follows plans for a similar diagnostic centre in an ex-department store at Gateshead's Metrocentre.

'Significant impact'

The Stockton centre will be run by North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust and South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, with support from the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board.

Michael Houghton, director of transformation at the region's NHS Foundation Trust, said diagnostic centres across England were helping to "diagnose and catch" cancers more quickly.

He added: "This centre will be run by a multi-professional team of health experts and will be ideally located in the centre of our patch, within reach of so many people which is why we are so confident it will have a significant impact on people's health."

As well as scans the centre will also offer cardiology services, X-rays, blood tests and respiratory checks.

Nigel Cooke, cabinet member for regeneration at the council, said: "It's excellent news that plans have been approved for the diagnostic centre right in the heart of our new waterfront development in Stockton Town Centre, as this facility will be a huge boost the borough and wider area as a whole."