Fresh questions raised about delays to Burntwood health centre
Fresh questions have been raised about the long delays to the long promised health centre in Burntwood. This comes as last year Lichfield District Council awarded more than £1.1 million in Community Infrastructure Levy funding to support the delivery of the project.
No formal plans have been submitted for the proposed health and wellbeing facility in Burntwood earmarked for Cherry Close.
This is despite the temporary centre at the nearby Burntwood Leisure Centre having closed in 2024.
Councillors were told in 2023 by the chief transformation officer of the Integrated Care Board (ICB) that he was “confident” of an opening date in 2025.
However, it is now understood that a planning application won’t be submitted until July or early August 2026.
Previously Councillor Rob Strachan, cabinet member for finance and commissioning, called on the ICB to ‘get on with it’ and said the council will not hold on to the CIL funding ‘forever’ as it could be used on other projects throughout the district.
In a recent cabinet meeting which awarded more than £1.4 million to other infrastructure projects in the district, further questions were raised over the long awaited scheme.
Councillor Andrew Smith, deputy leader and cabinet member for leisure and major projects said the council could not allow significant sums of money to remain tied up indefinitely.
He said: “Obviously whilst that’s a really important infrastructure project for us to go ahead with, we also need to be minded that I know the project for whatever reasons has seen some significant delays in the construction of it.
"So whilst that’s an important project to go ahead, what we also don’t want to see is big chunks of money being held for a project that may not occur.”
Councillor Alex Farrell, cabinet member for housing and local plan, replied: “We offered Burntwood Health Centre just over £1.1 million of CIL last year, CIL money has to be spent within three years of it being awarded.
"There have been delays that have concerned us and they asked for a six month extension to when they can spend the money to September 2028.
“We wouldn’t normally agree to an extension but because it’s really important to the people of Burntwood that they get this health centre we did agree to that six month extension.”
