Councillors in Llanbradach have expressed frustration at the lack of progress in developing a new health centre in the village.
They fear the opportunity to use the old All Saints’ church site will be lost unless Aneurin Bevan Health Board starts making progress on acquiring the land.
Councillor Colin Mann, who is a cabinet member on Caerphilly Council, said: “We’re very frustrated at the lack of progress because it’s nearly 18 months since we met the health board and presented a 450-signature petition from residents.
“We’re very worried that this once-in-lifetime opportunity establish a health centre will be lost due to what appears to be the health board sitting on this matter.”
Fellow cabinet and ward member Rob Gough added: “We’ve heard nothing from the health board but we are determined not to let this lie.
“We know the issues the NHS has with funding but Llanbradach needs and deserves a health centre. We have the backing of residents and the support of both GP practices and are determined to put more pressure on the health board.
Councillors Mann and Gough were among a delegation from the village that presented the petition to the health board and met both the chairman and chief executive to press their case.
Villagers have been pressing for church-owned land in Llanbradach, which has remained vacant for many years, to be used for a health centre development rather than for housing.
nise to see the piled councilers finaly doing somthing about it less than a year befor they need to stand for relection persionaly i whould have moved with it a lot sooner than a year and a harf of noty hering anything
The Caerphilly Basin generally is well provided for in respect to new modern Doctors surgeries and clinics, and new build initiatives are taking place at the moment.
If Llanbradach `needs` such a facility the Health Authority have to provide it, what has the incumbent Assembly Member done to promote its creation? Jeff Cuthbert has spent considerable sucessful effort to `save The Beeches` at the miners hospital site, even though my view is that those efforts will unrevel in the coming months and years, and be shown to be unsustainable in the long term, may it not have been a better use of energy and resources to canvase the Health Board on the Llanbradach Medical Centre Project, than a publically funded and unsustainable, in my view, project on the old Hospital site in Caerphilly, one thing is certain there is no contest in respect to the `public benefit test`.
Colin Mann and Rob Gough have to be supported by the wider Caerphilly population in thier efforts, after all it the spending of OUR money their are proposing, why noe extend the petition Rob.