Public meetings held on plans to redevelop Newton Lodge

Date:

South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust is inviting local residents and businesses to hear about plans to redevelop Newton Lodge, an NHS facility based at Fieldhead Hospital, Ouchthorpe Lane in Wakefield.

Meetings are taking place at the Learning and Development Centre at Fieldhead: 6pm – 7.30pm, Monday 31st January 2011 7.30pm – 8.30pm, Monday 31st January 2011 10am – 11.30 am, Tuesday 1st February 2011

Newton Lodge (The Yorkshire Centre for Forensic Psychiatry) was originally built in 1984. It is a medium secure unit for people who require NHS care in a secure environment. It provides care for people not only from the Wakefield district but also from across the Yorkshire and the Humber region.

South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust who run Newton Lodge are currently developing plans to significantly improve current facilities; the project would involve demolishing and rebuilding on the existing Fieldhead site. The redevelopment would be due for completion in the summer of 2013 and would see a proposed investment of around £10million, a significant investment for Wakefield and the local region.

Dr Adrian Berry, the Trust’s director of forensic services, said, "The redevelopment plan will ensure that the buildings are a suitable environment in which to provide modern, high quality mental health care. It will see the expansion of the specialist women’s service; a service that has received national recognition. By increasing the number of beds in this service it would mean that women who currently require this level of care and have to receive it out of the local area, would be able to receive the care they need locally. The proposed plans will also see the creation of a centre for therapeutic activity, further enhancing the quality of care the Trust is able to provide."

The meetings will present an overview of the plans for redevelopment and a presentation from the architect including a 3D representation of the building; both externally and the interior. There will then be plenty of time for questions and comments.

Steven Michael, the Trust’s chief executive said, "Before we submit our plans to the local authority, we are keen to involve local residents, our partners and local businesses. We are already discussing our plans in detail with our staff and people who currently use our services who have been involved in helping us with the initial designs. This is an exciting time for Newton Lodge and I hope local people take the opportunity to attend a meeting and provide us with their comments. We will carefully consider all comments and make any necessary adjustments to our plans before submitting the planning application."

Anyone wishing to attend one of the meetings is asked to confirm, by calling 01924 327381 or emailing sue.threadgold@swyt.nhs.uk.

Information packs about the redevelopment are available from Fieldhead main reception, or by calling 01924 327381. There is also full information and the opportunity to comment on the Trust’s website.

The Trust is asking for comments to be submitted by Wednesday 9th February 2011 using a form from the information pack, by email to sue.threadgold@swyt.nhs.uk, via the website or at one of the public meetings.

Public meetings held on plans to redevelop Newton Lodge

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