Village surgery to reopen
Parish Council in touch with Memorial Hall with regard to restarting branch surgery
A DOCTOR’S surgery held in a Moorlands village is set to reopen.
Well Street Clinic in Cheadle has for more than 50 years held an open one hour surgery on Tuesdays and Fridays each week in the village of Ipstones covering the residents of Ipstones, Foxt, Whiston and Froghall.
However, in September 2017 doctors were unable to access the Memorial Hall in Ipstones for a surgery due to seven months of refurbishment work at the premises.
Following the completion of the work, doctors decided to visit the village one day a week and make the Tuesday surgery appointments only. Then two years of the pandemic meant that the one day surgery was again stopped.
Ipstones Parish Council have been in correspondence with the practice over reopening the surgery once again in the village.
At the last monthly meeting of the parish council a letter was received from the practice manager, Jessica Harding.
It said: “We are pleased to announce that we have recently been in touch with the Memorial Hall committee with regards to starting up our branch surgery at Ipstones again.
“We have not yet finalised a date for the first clinic, but we are hoping this will be by mid-may, to include a GP and less frequently a member of the nursing team to undertake long term reviews for patients who struggle to attend at the surgery.
“We are currently finalising the day, but can confirm it will be a morning session.”
Councillors welcomed the news from the practice.
■ The parish council received correspondence regarding the new Moorlands Connect bus service, which will operate through several communities.
The letter from community transport and communications officer, Kathryn Grattage, said: “The team are currently at the marketing stage and pulling together packs for the parish councils which will include all the information required to book a journey.”
We are hoping that the first Ipstones Memorial Hall clinic will take place in mid-may
Jessica Harding
■ After several years Ipstones village has once again entered the Staffordshire Best Kept Village competition.
Leaflets have been delivered to households and posters have been erected informing residents.
■ Councillors voted to object to a planning application for the erection of two detached dwellings (outline application) on land to the north of Hawes Farm, High Street, Ipstones.
The council raised no objection for one dwelling but felt that two would impact on a nearby listed building and also it would bring in additional vehicles to the area in what is a busy road through the village.