Greenfield GP surgery saved

Greenfield GP Surgery has been saved from the threat of closure, after local Liberal Democrat councillors intervened to bring all involved groups together and agree a resolution to get a new contract for the building. 

Greenfield councillor Helen Bishop first discovered the threat after speaking to GP Bal Duper, following a district meeting about health issues. It quickly became clear that without an urgent intervention, the practice was likely to close in the next few months. 

By getting together the landlord, integrated care board and NHS Estates, with the help of the surgery, the councillors got agreement on a way forward, with a new five-year contract for the building settled, and funding provided locally by the NHS team in Oldham.

Councillor Bishop said: “The problem was that responsibility for the practice staying open lay with so many different people that Greenfield surgery was in danger of falling through the cracks. We had to get everyone together fast; confirm the importance of the surgery staying open; seek agreement on a contract with the landlord; and identify where the funding was coming from.

“The threat of closure – the legal process of removing the surgery as a tenant had already started – certainly sharpened people’s minds. Prior to this intervention, it had been drifting for months. In just a few weeks, we got agreement.

“Our whole focus was on the four and a half thousand people who would have lost their GP. We couldn’t – and didn’t – let that happen.”

The surgery has now agreed a new five year lease on the building, with funding being identified by the NHS team in Oldham to cover a shortfall in the cost of the contract. 

GP Bal Duper, who runs the Greenfield practice, said: “I don’t think we would have got so far in such a short time, with the deadline pending, without the input of the local councillors. We’re now going to work with the landlord to improve the facilities that are there for our patients.”

Councillor Sam Al-Hamdani added: “This is such great news.

“So many people in Saddleworth have problems accessing healthcare –  there are too many buildings not being used to their potential; and too many health services only available in Oldham town centre.

“If the surgery had closed, it would have been horrific for so many people. It was a very real threat, but I’m delighted that we were able to bring all the right people to the table and hammer out an agreement.”