Support for revised GP surgery proposal near Errol Airfield

Revised plans have been lodged for a stop-gap GP surgery in the Carse of Gowrie.

The Carse Medical Group has had to move out of its main premises at Errol, as the building goes on the market.

As an emergency measure, the surgery will operate from its second base, at St Madoes, for the next few weeks.

However, proposals for a temporary surgery, on land to the south-west of Errol Airfield, have now been submitted to Perth and Kinross Council.

A previous application was scrapped following concerns about how people would get to it from the busy A90 road.

Papers lodged by DMH Baird Lumsden, on behalf of Carse Medical Practice and Morris Leslie Ltd, state that the earmarked site is the only available option.

A spokesman said: “The first application was withdrawn to allow the access situation to be reviewed, and to allow the preparation of further supporting information.”

He said the access issue had been addressed by moving the site to create greater visibility for traffic entering and leaving.

The practice considered, and ruled out, several other locations, including the old Picture House on High Street, council-controlled land beside the local school and a derelict building opposite the surgery, before settling on the site near the airfield.

The spokesman said: “The practice is limited in its ability to fund any temporary solution, which must be a direct commercial relationship between the practice and the landowner.

“It is accepted that the application site is not allocated for development and outside of the village but it represents the only opportunity to provide an urgently required temporary surgery on a site that is available and can be easily developed.”

The revised plans have already attracted 11 messages of support from residents, including local councillors Angus Forbes and Alasdair Bailey.