HEALTH bosses have insisted they are committed to creating a new doctor’s surgery at Basildon Sporting Village - despite initial plans being withdrawn.

Last November, the Knights Surgery, in Knights, Laindon, was forced to close as the Basildon and Brentwood Clinical Commissioning Group feared the building had become dangerous.

Fresh plans are now being drawn up for a five-year surgery at the sporting village, after an initial application submitted to the council was withdrawn last week.

It comes as Andrew Gordon, Labour Lee Chapel North councillor and chairman of the Basildon health and wellbeing partnership, called for clarity and action after the practice closure.

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He also raised concerns the sporting village may not be the most accessible site to residents.

He said: “I know residents were unhappy with the plan and I had concerns about it being so far away too.

“My ward is one of the most densely populated and having no doctors or a surgery a long way away is not good.

“I want to know what money the NHS is putting into doctors in Basildon.

“It’s not acceptable and been going on so long now.

“We need clarity of what’s happening and especially with the Covid-19 pandemic it’s even more important to have good doctors.

“The whole saga has gone on far too long and something needs to be sorted.”

During 2018, Doctor Subrata Basu, senior partner at Knights Surgery, said the walls of the building were cracking and the floors were sinking.

The worried health professional was expecting a new centre to be built to relocate the service with about 3,000 patients.

William Guy, interim deputy accountable officer for Basildon and Brentwood Clinical Commissioning Group, insisted plans would be resubmitted in coming months, but no time scale was given.

He said: “We are working closely with NHS England and NHS Improvement, Basildon Council and Knights Surgery.

“The plans are being revised and we intend to submit a fresh planning application for a temporary surgery at Basildon Sporting Village shortly.”