Plans lodged to expand GP surgery on outskirts of Norwich

A GP surgery expansion needed to deal with an influx of people expected to move into a city suburb looks set to go ahead.

A bid to demolish part of the Drayton Medical Practice and add a two-storey extension will go before Broadland District Council’s (BDC) planning committee this week, with officials recommending it be approved.

Drayton is undergoing significant development, with hundreds of homes being built in the area which will add pressure on the GP practice.

Hopkins Homes, which has given land for the expansion as part of a planning agreement, is building 267 homes on the nearby Hall Lane, while another hundred are being built on Drayton High Road.

Drayton Medical Practice already has 18,200 patients registered.

The application will result in the practice having a total of eleven consultation rooms, three treatment rooms, two rooms for telephone medical appointments, a physiotherapy room, a counselling room and an interview room.

While the scheme has seen the support of Drayton Parish Council, two letters of objection were submitted to the committee ahead of Thursday’s meeting.

The objectors raised concerns that the scheme could create a flood risk, that the extra patients would disturb neighbours and that it would lead to an invasion of privacy of the surrounding properties.

Recommending the scheme for approval, BDC planning officials said: “The proposals will remodel and extend an existing medical practice which will better serve the residents of Drayton and surrounding communities within the practice’s catchment.

“Whilst some impacts upon immediate adjoining residents have been identified, these have been suitably considered and mitigated by the design to prevent unacceptable intrusions and to ensure a reasonable level of residential amenity.”

They added that issues relating to highways safety, parking and flood risks have been considered, with conditions to mitigate issues where necessary.

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