Fife Council approve NHS Fife's plans for Francis Street

Fife Council have given NHS Fife the go-ahead for a facility to be built at Francis Street, eventually replacing the outdated and "not fit for purpose" building on David Street.

The Scottish Government "promised" in 2011 to deliver a new medical practice for the town but there's no funding in place and locals are running out of patience after years of delay.

In March 2023 the prognosis from Holyrood wasn't good with the announcement that money for capital projects like much-needed health centres for Lochgelly and Kincardine won't even be confirmed until the "second half of the decade".

Staff often have to use buckets to catch the water from the leaking roof at the current Lochgelly Health Centre on David Street. (Image: David Wardle) READ MORE: Proposals unveiled to turn Cowdenbeath pub into flats

NHS Fife's application for a new centre was submitted in October 2022.

One objection was received, with concerns including road safety, an increase in traffic and loss of open space.

Planning consent is in place so that, when the funding is hopefully delivered, they can get on with building a two-storey health and wellbeing centre on an area of brownfield land that's just under a hectare in size.

The health board's planning agents, J M Architects, explained: "NHS Fife’s vision is to create a new community health and wellbeing centre for Lochgelly that will allow services to be brought back towards the community whilst looking to optimise flexibility within the building and accommodate potential future expansion."

The Friends of Lochgelly Health Centre have kept up the pressure, campaigning for a new facility for the town. (Image: David Wardle) Formerly the site of a block of flats, which were demolished in 2000, the plot - bordered by Berry Street to the north and Ballingry Street to the west - is now grassed open space that's surrounded by housing.

Lochgelly West Primary School, Ore Valley Business Centre and Mossview Care Home will be near neighbours.

A council report said: "The building would be located in the centre of the site and the car parking would be located to the west, with the eastern side of the site retained as a green space."

The new centre will have an entranceway, main reception and waiting areas, consulting rooms, office and admin spaces, a separate staff entrance and staff room.

The architects offer a flexible layout, lots of natural daylight and air, and outside there will be a landscaped courtyard.

A different view of the site from the corner of Berry Street and Ballingry Street. (Image: Google) It will be a huge improvement on the David Street building which NHS described as "not fit for purpose".

Last July health secretary Neil Gray was given a tour and afterwards, Dr Brian Robson told the Times it was important the minister witnessed the "conditions that patients experience and staff experience".

He added: "We managed to show him the water coming through the ceilings and staff working in cupboards with no windows, the lack of security, the carpeted clinical rooms.

"He was, I think, genuinely shocked by the state of the health centre."

SNP MSP for Cowdenbeath, Annabelle Ewing, has pushed her own party's ministers for answers.

In November at Holyrood she said: "The cabinet secretary will be aware of my long-standing fight to get a much-needed new medical centre for Lochgelly - something that was first promised by the Scottish Government back in 2011.

"Given that I understand that there will be additional capital spend available and that decisions will quite properly be made according to priority, I put it to the cabinet secretary that it must surely be Lochgelly’s turn now."