IT was the £20 million health centre set to become a beacon of the community with a range of medical services, but now it seems ‘Bracknell HealthSpace’ will never see the light of day.

Almost ten years after exciting plans to redevelop the Skimped Hill Health Centre were unveiled, the ambitious proposals have now finally be withdrawn.

According to designs first published in November 2010, the new community health centre would have included a wide range of services, such as GP surgeries, physiotherapy, some urgent care facilities, dental appointments, mental health services and much more.

Why were the plans withdrawn?

Despite councillors giving Bracknell Forest’s planning chief the all-clear to approve the proposals at a meeting in March 2011, the plans never progressed.

They were withdrawn by Bracknell Forest Council (BFC) earlier this month, rather than by applicants Ashley House PLC.

Explaining the move, BFC director Andrew Hunter said: “The planning permission for Skimped Hill was never completed by the applicant so the permission was never issued.

READ MORE: Permission approved for Bracknell healthspace

“The applicant had requested that the application remain undetermined, however, with the passage of time it is unlikely that this specific scheme will be brought forward and as such the application has been withdrawn.”

What’s the history behind the plans?

A report from this newspaper from January 2011 indicated applicants had hoped to get the HealthSpace open by the end of 2012, originally.

Reportedly valued at £20 million, the project had the backing of East Berkshire’s NHS.

Sally Kemp, then chairwoman of NHS Berkshire East, said in 2011: “2011 promises to be a good year for health services in Bracknell with the HealthSpace taking shape and the Royal Berkshire Bracknell clinic opening."

The Bracknell clinic, which did open at Brants Bridge and is now also dubbed a ‘Healthspace’, was a separate plan which gained permission in 2009.

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It operates as an urgent care centre with a different range of services, although some of the offerings tipped for the Skimped Hill site can be found at Brants Bridge.

Skimped Hill’s new community centre appears to have suffered a different fate to Brants Bridge, which is set to play its part in the fight against coronavirus.

Was their opposition to the proposals?

A group of residents gathered a petition with 50 signatures requesting more information about travel issues associated with the plan, and concerns were raised about a lack of car parking spaces at the site at the 2011 planning meeting.

But with only one formal objection lodged against the plan, the designs did not face public opposition.

The shelving of the plans, then, is even more strange given Ashley House’s optimistic vision.

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A design statement from the applicants published in 2011 read: “East Berkshire PCT (primary care Trust) would like to develop new premises in order to achieve a number of strategic objectives.

“Local GPs need a building which is ‘fit for purpose’ and can develop a high quality of services it offers as a beacon in the local community.

“The proposed development — “Healthspace” — is specifically linked into the NHS agenda for improving Health provision in the community.”

What do the applicants and the NHS have to say about the withdrawal?

Ashley House PLC and East Berkshire Clinical Commissioning Group have been asked why the plans did not progress.

However, at the time of publication, neither had responded to our requests.