Practical completion has been reached at Washwood Health Health and Wellbeing Centre that will see Forward Thinking Birmingham, the city’s mental health partnership for 0-25 year olds, move into a new state-of-the-art space.
Lead provider, Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, bases the service out of five hub locations around the city. Blakesley House, Yardley, one of the centres, was identified for disposal as it is no longer fit for purpose with staff needing to relocate.
The variation has cost £1.2m and will reduce the level of void space within the building as well as providing a modern, state-of-the-art, healthcare building within an area of high health need. The internal reconfiguration has allowed Forward Thinking Birmingham, to place extra safety measures into the building such as heightened balustrades on the stairs and landing areas and extra CCTV.
Alongside partners Prime and Integral, changes have been made to deliver seven new clinical rooms including four consultation rooms, two physical health rooms and a family therapy room.
It has been fantastic to see the development of Washwood Heath over the past few years. The new space for Forward Thinking Birmingham will now provide a safe, comfortable and functional space in a fit-for-purpose building.
In the past year, Washwood Heath Health and Wellbeing Centre, saw more than 45,000 patients benefit from the £2.18 million Community Diagnostic Centre. The previous works provided the latest cutting-edge diagnostic imaging technology for x-ray, MRI and ultrasound, alongside heart investigations and access to blood tests.
A predicted 16,000 patients a year have had x-ray appointments at the new centre which has brought the benefits of quicker access to diagnostic care closer to home and played a key part in reducing the NHS elective treatment backlog.
The building is a core asset for the NHS in Birmingham provided by Birmingham and Solihull LIFTCo alongside CHP with the improved space now delivering services within this area of high health need.
Washwood Heath Medical Centre provides FTB with the modern healthcare setting that our patients, families and staff need, and more importantly, deserve. Since moving in we’ve received many comments about how bright, spacious and welcoming our new environment is. Providing mental health care in a large multi-use healthcare premises, based right in the heart of the community that we serve, is also helping us to continue to break down the stigmas associated with mental health.
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