Work has begun to fit out a new health centre at Beam Park in Rainham, Essex which will provide GP and community health services for thousands of local people.
Expected to open in 2024, Beam Park Health Centre will be built over two floors of a 12-storey building in Halewood Way, providing a new GPs’ surgery, plus a range of other specialist GP-led services to meet the needs of those living in and near Beam Park. The 1,500 m2 space will include 22 consulting rooms, three interview rooms, one enhanced treatment room, and an open plan office.
Plans for it were agreed as part of the planning approval for Countryside Partnerships’ and L&Q’s 3,000-home regeneration of the former Ford factory site, and were drawn up by the local NHS working closely with Barking and Dagenham and Havering councils, Countryside Partnerships, and L&Q. Work is now under way on the fit-out, following the successful completion of the external and shell elements of the building.
Sarah See, MD for Primary Care at NHS North East London, said: “It’s really exciting to see work starting on the new health centre, which will be a fantastic asset to the local community.
As well as providing a range of vital health services for Beam Park residents, it will play an important role in our work with local partners to address health inequalities and encourage healthier lifestyles.”
Kevin Delve, MD, East London, Countryside Partnerships, said: “The new health centre’s exterior completion is a significant milestone in the progress of the first two phases of Beam Park, where we have now delivered almost two-thirds of the planned 1,158 homes. Alongside the newly opened nursery, this is proof of our commitment to delivering community facilities alongside these new homes as we transform the former Ford factory into a thriving community.”
Beam Park is reportedly one of only three regeneration schemes in London delivering at least 3,000 homes and providing 50% high quality affordable housing (including shared ownership, London Living Rent and London Affordable rent homes) to meet local community needs. When complete, there will also be two schools, retail spaces, a gym, a nursery, a multi-faith centre, and two ‘state-of-the-art’ energy centres. Around 44% of the development has been allocated for publicly accessible green space, which includes a 3.5-hectare central park in the development’s heart, with the River Beam running through it.
