A NEW medical and dental centre has opened. 

It is the first facility in Wiltshire to offer a shared MOD and NHS Primary Healthcare provision and is based in Larkhill. 

It signifies the end of the Army Basing Programme (ABP).

The centre, which opened yesterday (November 30), comprises of two GP practices (MOD and NHS) with consulting and treatment rooms and each practice also has a dispensary.

Housed within the building is a Defence Primary Health Care (DPHC) Dental Centre consisting of 12 dental chairs with supporting equipment.

Minister for Defence Personnel, Veterans and Service Families, Dr. Andrew Murrison, said: “I was delighted to open the Larkhill Medical and Dental Centre. It is truly state-of-the-art. Delivered under the successful Army Basing Programme, it rightly provides the very best primary care facilities and is a model for Defence-NHS cooperation.

“It has been incredibly useful to see first-hand how this investment has not only benefitted our Service personnel but also the local community.”

The Army Basing Programme has delivered the Government’s 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) commitment to bring all UK military units back from Germany by 2020, and to move and re-role military units to implement the Army 2020 Plan, generating savings building to £240M per year.

Director of Basing and Infrastructure, Major General Richard Clements said: “The £1.8Bn investment in the estate under the Army Basing Programme has truly made a difference to our Service personnel, their families and local communities across the UK.

“Infrastructure is actually about people, not buildings, and this facility perfectly embodies that. We are committed to creating sustainable environments in which all of our people can better live, work and train.”

Fiona Slevin-Brown, director of Place – Wiltshire, Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board said: “Since its completion in 2020, this bespoke facility has been used during the COVID-19 pandemic as a mass vaccination centre by both DPHC and the NHS. Now, we look forward to providing comprehensive health care to those in the Armed Forces, their families and the wider local community.”

The centre was built on the land surrounding Stonehenge, a UNESCO World Heritage site, which resulted in a number of considerations being developed in consultation with the Planning Authority and English Heritage. These were incorporated into the design of the building and adjacent areas, to ensure that the sight line from Stonehenge was not affected.