THE construction of a new surgery to serve the people of Sandiway and Cuddington would not be ‘financially viable’.

This is according to Danebridge Medical Practice, which runs the current surgery in the village.

The practice is currently proposing to close the existing Sandiway Surgery on the grounds of there being a national shortage of salaried GPs and that the running of the surgery involves high costs.

In a frequently asked question list circulated to patients, it states: “It would require a very large investment to bring the premises up to standard, which is simply not available.”

But this statement has been questioned by patients and village residents, who are fighting for Sandiway Surgery to remain open.

They asked Danebridge Medical Practice, by way of a Freedom of Information request, for the basis on which this statement was made.

The practice responded with: “I am not aware of any applications for improvement of these premises.

“I have sought a quote for the building of a new premise to serve 3,500 patients – the number of patients on the practice list who reside in the Sandiway and Cuddington area.

“The cost to build a new facility has been quoted as £1.16 million pounds, and this cost is excluding the purchase of any land.

“The advice from NHS property services is that they do not build practices of this size as they are not financially viable.”

Northwich Guardian:

Residents have formed a Save our Surgery SOS group in protest against the closure

A further Freedom of Information request revealed that the current Sandiway Surgery has 3,747 patients on its practice list, including 725 aged 70 or over.

A key issue for many patients is that the proposed surgery closure will make access to primary care less accessible, with patents having to travel across town having been transferred to Kingsmead or Danebridge surgery.

Gillian Edwards, Cheshire West and Chester councillor for Weaver and Cuddington, said: “The surgery is a lifeline to many villagers who are unable to travel to other surgeries because they have no transport.

“Furthermore, the frequency of public transport for the area and the distance from the bus terminus and the train station do not make public transport a viable option.”

Despite this, Danebridge Medical Practice deflected responsibility when asked what solutions will be implemented for people needing to use public transport to access alternative surgery locations.

It said: “It is not the responsibility of general medical practice to provide transport from a patient’s home to the surgery - this is the responsibility of the patient.”

A further consultation event on the closure of Sandiway Surgery is due to be held this evening, Wednesday, between 6.30pm and 7.30pm at Sandiway Primary School.