Four GP surgeries to be expanded and road cameras installed in Chichester district
Money to expand four GP surgeries has been included in Chichester District Council’s Infrastructure Business Plan 2025/2030.
The Plan (IBP) – which prioritises the infrastructure needed to support growth identified in the Local Plan – was approved at a meeting of the full council.
Of the schemes added, there was £1.1m for a two-storey extension at Southbourne Surgery, which will increase the number of clinic rooms.
Cathedral Surgery will receive £600,000 for extension work, while Loxwood Surgery will receive £300,000 for an extension and site re-work.
And £800,000 will be spent on new GP premises in Bosham, to support housing growth in the area.
Council leader Adrian Moss said: “Looking after our residents and making sure they have GP provision is really important – and I’m sure we all get comments from our residents on that.
“It’s good to see it spreading and getting better NHS provision within the area – and that’s partly because of the pressure that we’ve been putting on, I’m absolutely sure.”
Also on the list of new schemes was the approval of £117,000 to enable Sussex Police to install automatic number plate recognition cameras in 13 locations.
Costing around £9,000 each, the cameras will be set up in Broyle Road, St Paul’s Road, Bognor Road, Via Ravenna, St Pancras, Oving Road, Longacres Way, and A286 Midhurst Road – all in Chichester – as well as West Wittering Road, Chilgrove, Hunston village, the A285 Halnaker, and North Mundham Road.
There will be work carried out on the paving in North Street and East Street, in the city centre, with £2m being approved for public realm improvements.
A report to the council said: “Renewing the heart of Chichester’s city centre will boost the local economy by attracting more visitors and supporting businesses, achieving a key priority in the Chichester Vision, Chichester regeneration strategy and Chichester Growth Programme.”
The IBP is funded in a variety of ways, including government grants and the use of S106 and Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) monies. Both of the latter two are paid to the council by developers who receive planning permission to build in the area.
The progress of a number of sustainable transport projects has slipped, though the amount of money needed to complete them has not changed.
The A285 Chichester to Tangmere sustainable transport corridor is now scheduled for 2028-29 rather than 2024-26. CIL funding of £500,000 has been requested.
The A286 Birdham Road/B2201 Selsey Road Roundabout junction improvement has slipped from 2024-25 to 2026-27. CIL funding of £440,000 has been requested.
Each phase of the reconfiguration/improvement of the Westhampnett Waste Transfer Station/Household Waste Recycling Site project has slipped from 2024-27 to 2025-28. CIL funding of £2.5m has been requested.
Each phase of the A259 Chichester to Bognor Regis corridor improvement scheme has slipped from 2024-26 to 2027-29. CIL funding of £2.28m has been requested.
A report to the council said: “Local communities are frequently concerned that the provision of infrastructure – by which we mean roads, flood defences, schools, doctors’ surgeries, children’s playgrounds etc – does not keep pace with the rate of new house building.
“One purpose of the IBP is to ensure that infrastructure is provided at the right time and in the right place so that this problem does not get worse in the future.”