New Badenoch and Strathspey community hospital takes step forward

The application relates to the land south of the former call centre in the Technology Park in Aviemore which was purchased earlier this week.

Once completed, the new, modern facility will feature a community hospital and health centre and it will bring together inpatient services with Aviemore Medical Practice, the Scottish Ambulance Service and community health and care teams.

NHS Highland’s project director for the Badenoch and Strathspey redesign Georgia Haire, said: “This is another exciting step. The approval of the planning application signals that we are at an advanced stage in the design of the new facility and follows on from the confirmation of the land purchase this week.

“We are delighted the National Park planning committee recognised not only the quality of the proposed design but also the extensive involvement of local stakeholders and communities throughout the design process which has enabled the design team to achieve this standard.

“This investment from NHS Highland underlines our commitment to improving health and social care services across Highland.”

The new community hospital and Medical Practice will feature:

• 24 inpatient beds
• 12 consulting/treatment rooms in Aviemore Medical Practice
• Three Minor Injuries/Out-of-Hours treatment rooms
• Scottish Ambulance Service base
• X-ray facilities
• Outpatient department with six consulting/clinic rooms; a group therapy room; physiotherapy gym; podiatry and dental treatment rooms
• Allied Health Professionals; physiotherapy; occupational therapy; podiatry; speech and language and dietetics
• Office base for NHS Highland community integrated teams and Highland Council care and learning staff

The new facility will also include a transport “hub at the hospital” with a drop-off area at the front entrance for commercial buses, community and local transport providers. Electronic bus timetable information will be provided both inside and outside the building.

A minimum of 128 parking spaces are proposed for patients, visitors and staff and high-quality cycle shelters will be provided near the main entrance.

The landscaping at the hospital will include a therapy garden area for local community groups, and paths through the site will encourage continued community use of the amenity space to the rear of the hospital and link with proposed active travel routes in the wider Aviemore area.

The new community hospital in Aviemore is being designed and built by hub North Scotland Ltd, an initiative set up by the Scottish Futures Trust. Balfour Beatty is the main contractor working alongside architectural firms Oberlanders based in Edinburgh and Portree-based Rural Design – and engineering firms Waterman Group and Rybka.

Michael Padzinski, chief executive of hub North Scotland, said: “We are delighted to see these plans successfully reach such a key landmark on the journey to provide a modern healthcare facility for the people of Badenoch and Strathspey and are looking forward to working with our partners to deliver it.”

The full business case for the project is scheduled to be presented to the Scottish Government in early 2019, with the construction of the hospitals commencing once this is approved.