The estimated £15m investment planned for the project, will kick-start the project to develop the new health centre after the Covid-19 pandemic forced plans to be paused.
Working closely with health and care partners – including NHS Property Services Ltd and local council colleagues – it is now full steam ahead to design a facility that best meets local people’s needs. The much-loved original frontage of the Wilson hospital building will be kept, with new space behind it.
The centre will be focused on people’s wellbeing – their overall health and happiness, not just health conditions they might have. Services will include children’s clinics, mental health and social prescribing – as well as community rooms and outdoor spaces for community-led projects.
Discussions are ongoing about what other services could be offered in the available space.
Plans for the new centre are really exciting. It will be somewhere to help the community connect and stay healthy.”
NHS South West London Executive Director for Merton, Mark Creelman, said: “Plans for the new centre are really exciting. It will be somewhere to help the community connect and stay healthy.
“Like any big project, this will take time so it will be a couple of years before we can break ground on construction work, but this new funding means we can move towards making the centre a reality.”
Dr Mohan Sekeram, local GP at Wide Way Medical Centre, said: “This new hub in the heart of Mitcham will be a major boost in our drive to improve the health and wellbeing of people in our area – and provide services fit for the future.
“It will benefit the community in many ways bringing us together tackle issues such as living with long term conditions like diabetes and heart disease, as well as social isolation. Increased space will mean we can offer clinical services on the site too.”
This new centre in the heart of Mitcham will be a major boost in our drive to improve the health and wellbeing of people in our area.”
There have already been developments on the site, including refurbished space within the existing building, which has served as a vaccination centre in recent years. This space allows for wellbeing activities to start immediately, while work to drive forward the development continues behind the scenes.
Wilson Steering Group, which is responsible for championing the development of wellbeing services for the local community, has commissioned local charity Jigsaw4u to support community and voluntary organisations put in place what local people would like to see.
For example, Project Preloved hosts a dedicated group of trainee stitchers challenging the throw-away philosophy, learning new skills and finding friendship.
Sustainable Merton is teaching complete novices how to upcycle and mend well-loved items and give them a second breath of life. T-shirts are turned into tote bags and old cardies into colourful cushion covers.
The space available now provides a perfect venue for small groups to gather, and for workshops or meetings of organisations delivering wellbeing services and activities. There are five meeting rooms, appropriate for individual and small group work; a larger public space for groups of up to 15 and use of a community garden.
The garden was designed by experts using some plants and flowers originally donated from the Wimbledon Tennis club and will offer activities such as gardening groups, school visits and nature watching, linking to the social prescribing work.
As part of the funding model for the new centre, plans to sell proportions of land on the NHS-owned Wilson and Birches Close sites will be moving forward in the coming years. The sites were identified for residential development in the Merton’s Estates Local Plan.
Anyone interested in updates on work at the Wilson hospital can sign up for the Merton health and care newsletter.
Find out more about Wilson wellbeing services at a community open day on 5 April 2023.