Work has begun on a new medical centre which will serve more than 15,000 patients in Sandwell.

The centre, which will cost £6m, is being built next to Sandwell Hospital and it is hoped it will help ease pressure on hospital staff by enabling A&E arrivals to be referred easily to GPs, when appropriate.

Carters Green Medical Centre and Lyndon Health Centre will both relocate to the site, which will open its doors early in 2021. The new two-storey building will include 22 consulting and treatment rooms as well as an on-site pharmacy.

Once another major healthcare building project, the £475m Midland Metropolitan Hospital in Smethwick, opens in 2022, the A&E department at Sandwell Hospital will be downgraded to an urgent care centre and all inpatients will transfer to Smethwick. Having the new medical centre so close to Sandwell Hospital will help ensure a close partnership between GPs and outpatient hospital services.

The centre is a joint venture between Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust and Your Health Partnership, which provides services for 46,000 people across Sandwell and the West Midlands.

Think Sandwell will be following the construction progress with interest and wishes the local companies involved all the best for the project. To find out how we can help your business with redevelopment and construction plans, visit our Property and Planning pages.