Go-ahead for Hereford city health centre

Hereford is to get a new medical centre intended to catch life-threatening diseases early.

Wye Valley NHS Trust has been given planning permission for the new community diagnostic centre, or CDC, off the A49 Holmer Road to the north of the city.

This will be “critical to easing pressure on the diagnostics department of the Herefordshire County Hospital”, the trust said in its application.

Clad in black metal with timber detailing, the new two-storey building will house specialist scanning and diagnostic equipment including MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), CT (computed tomography) and x-ray, along with consulting rooms, a reception and waiting area and staff facilities.

It is intended to achieve an “excellent” BREEAM rating, a measure of a building’s sustainability in terms of insulation, natural light and water conservation.

It will go on a one-hectare, roughly square plot between B&Q and Glosford Secure Storage, currently mostly grass with car parking along the eastern edge, with room for possible expansion in future.

There were no objections to the proposal from official consultees.

But city resident Beth Jones said the junction off Holmer Road, which also gives access to several large retail outlets, “is already very dangerous for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists without this increased level of activity”.

Stuart Speight agreed that it would mean “an additional burden to an already dangerous and difficult junction”.

National Highways, which manages the A49, did not object, nor did Herefordshire Council’s own traffic engineer – though she did call for improvements to cycle access from the main road.

Planning officer Heather Carlisle considered that the building was “of a high design quality”, though its design had been revised during the planning consultation, and was in a highly sustainable location.

As for traffic, it “could be safely accommodated within the local highway network without resulting in any cumulative severe impact”, she concluded.

A requirement to submit a travel plan, setting out how sustainable transport for staff and visitors will be promoted, and for bike access and storage measures, are among 19 conditions with the planning approval.

CDCs are a national health policy priority as they allow patients to be screened for conditions closer to home, with shorter waiting times and less likelihood of cancellation.