A DOCTORS surgery in Flackwell Heath is set to close this Summer, after a surveyor said the building does not meet NHS standards.

Partners of the Cherrymead Surgery have decided not to renew the lease at their Straight Bit branch, saying it cannot cater for some basic services.

From April, many of the 3,500 patients will be sent to Cherrymead’s main surgery in Loudwater, which is a modern building with capacity for development.

The closure has raised concerns that some patients may struggle to reach the new site if they do not have easy access to a car.

Some of the Flackwell Heath site’s problems were highlighted during a busy flu vaccination clinic in October, with a lack of seats in the waiting room, poor ventilation and limited parking space prompting concerns about comfort and safety.

Dr Kristina King, a partner at Cherrymead, said: “Many of the services which we need to provide for our patients, including emergency care, urgent investigations, minor operations, and vaccination clinics cannot be provided from the Flackwell Heath site.

“We want to provide the safest and most up-to-date services possible and also to be able to offer better access to these services in future. We do not think we will be able to do this safely and effectively if we continue to use the building at Flackwell Heath, with the staff being split across two sites.”

Home visits will still be available to those who are housebound, or too ill to get to Loudwater, while Hawthornden Surgery in Flackwell Heath has agreed to register others who want to stay in the village.

Ryan Mellett, 73, a patient at Cherrymead’s Flackwell Heath branch, said: “I shall just carry on as usual because I already have to go to Loudwater to have dressings put on.

“I presume what they are coming up with will be cost effective, but there’s a worry that this will make a difference for old people who can’t drive. It’s going to cost them more if they’re getting a taxi to Loudwater.”

The Cherrymead partners are holding a public meeting at Christ Church, Chapel Road, on January 24, from 7 - 8pm, to discuss the plans in more detail, and gather ideas on how develop services. A questionnaire has also been sent to patients.