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Permalink Reply by Donald Smith on January 16, 2017 at 12:12

The information you seek is contained in the Planning Application documents under Planning and Design

see LINK

The GP [practice] serves two practitioners whom are nearing retirement age and who have occupied the premises since the late 1980s as reflected by the permission to change the use of the property, from a former residential dwelling. The application was approved under application OLD/1986/1261. Officially the last trading day for the practice will be on the 14th May 2017. 4.3 Due to the reduced number of patients registered at the practice, the existing GP is not considered to be financially viable to continue given the site’s proximity to Hornsey Central Health Centre which also provides a General Practice service (Queenswood). Moreover, the current arrangement is in conflict with the NHS’s intentions of providing purpose built surgeries. Whilst the use has been operating for over 25 years, the circumstances have since changed and therefore the material considerations of the case are a significant factor in the assessment of this application. 4.4 NHS England are aware of the closure and will be meeting in March of this year to decide on how to manage the premises. It is anticipated that the existing patients will be dispersed to other local practices, with Hornsey Central Health Centre being the most obvious and accommodating choice. Hornsey Central Health Centre have confirmed that they have capacity for accommodating a significant number of the existing patients at No.153.

 It is recognised that there is an oversupply of surgeries in the area. The Vale practice, a local purpose built practice in Park Road is known to have spare rooms, signifying a lack or need to meet the facility’s capacity.

There are currently 5 staff employed at the site of whom and with the exception of the GPs themselves, one is full-time. They share staff with another practice located in Islington (Islington Surgery Partnership Primary Care Centre 331 Camden Road N7). The proposal will therefore see no reduction in employment with all of the existing staff reverting to the Islington practice. The GPs are of retirement age and so the loss here is an imminent aspect regardless of the situation. 4.7 Queenswood are willing to merge with the existing practice to take on the remaining patients and so there will be no direct impact to the loss of this ’community facility’. Planning policy, more so the London Plan, recognises the requirement for purpose built health facilities where access and practicality are key aspects. It is considered that the conditions for the loss of the use have been appropriately demonstrated.

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Permalink Reply by Lesley Ramm on January 16, 2017 at 16:00

Thank you so much for this information.

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