Prospective atients and staff have been given a first glimpse at plans for a new super medical centre.

Early proposals were shown to guests at an open day held at the Shrublands Youth and Adult Centre in Gorleston this week.

The Shrublands Health Centre site on Magdalen Way was chosen last year by the NHS Great Yarmouth and Waveney Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) as the location to locate three separate Gorleston surgeries under one roof.

The design for a new building will incorporate the three practices and could include a podiatry, continence and falls units, an out-of-hospital team, and training facilities for new health professionals.

The CCG said it was too early to know any final costs while detail as to which services will be delivered from the site is being worked out.

They do anticipate the site will cater for around 18,000 patients, which includes those currently receiving care at Gorleston Medical Centre, as well as an estimated 3,500 increase in the patient population over the coming decade.

Following two public consultations held last year, the former Family Health clinic, in East Anglian Way, and Falkland Surgery, in Falkland Way were closed under plans to merge with Gorleston Medical Centre, which is currently based in portable buildings.

Norwich-based design firm LSI Architects have been charged with coming up with a plan and have been speaking to key stakeholders before submitting a planning application early next year.

Ewa Bubnicka-Gyde, an architect with the firm said they were in a consultative stage and in the process of speaking to organisations which were currently on site to work out their needs.

She added: 'We like talking to people to hear to what they say. We don't want to develop a scheme that is going to planning without listening first. We are trying to provide enough space for all the different health centres on the site. Overall the feedback has been positive and people are looking forward to it now opening.'

Chris Lappin, an architectural assistant at the same firm, said there was a strong community feeling about the project which was largely welcomed but said there were concerns about parking and traffic management.

Fran O'Driscoll, director of partnerships and delivery with the CCG, said: 'We are working alongside the architects, Norfolk County Council, Great Yarmouth Borough Council and the local community to progress the plans for the Shrublands centre. The site is being developed following a public consultation by NHS Great Yarmouth and Waveney CCG in 2015 after 53.5pc of respondents chose the site as the preferred location.'

Just weeks after the closure of the Greyfriars walk-in centre, what do you think of this latest health re-organisation? Email your letter to anne.edwards@archant.co.uk or write to The Editor, 169 King Street, Great Yarmouth, NR30 2PA

See Page 38 for pictures of the Open Day