A new state-of-the-art health centre has been hit with another delay.
The latest snag for the Worthing Integrated Care Centre comes after levels of bacteria, reported locally as legionella, were found in the building’s heating system.
The new building, which has been built on a former car park in Stoke Abbott Road, has been in the works for years and has seen several delays and rises in costs.
When fully opened, the centre will provide GP, mental health, community and dentistry services under one roof as well as a pharmacy and additional services for families and young children.
A Worthing Borough Council spokesman said the local authority hopes to rectify the issue with the heating system in the next two weeks.
The original budget for the project, which hopes to “transform healthcare” in the town, was just under £34 million.
In 2023, Worthing's cabinet agreed to invest a further £5.6 million in the development because of rising costs.
Then in February 2024, Worthing Borough Council agreed to a further increase in the budget of up to £1.85 million to complete the centre’s work, with the final expected cost for the project being over £41 million.
Payden’s Pharmacy has already opened at the site and other partners will move in in the coming months.
Dental services provided by Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust were due to transfer to the centre from their current temporary base in Liverpool Gardens before the end of January.
Worthing Medical Group was also expected to move its practice from its current sites in Shelley Road and Heene Road to the WICC early in the new year.
Teams from Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, which run mental health services across the county, were expected to move into the building early in 2025.
A spokesman for Worthing Borough Council said: “An issue with the heating system of the WICC meant that low levels of bacteria were discovered in tests carried out at the building.
“We’re working with our managing agent for the WICC as well as our partners involved in the construction of the building to tackle the issue so that the new tenants can complete their move in and begin providing services to the community as quickly as possible.
“We expect confirmation that the issue has been resolved within the next couple of weeks.
"We are delighted that Payden’s Pharmacy has already moved onto the site and other health services will be able to move in over the coming months.”
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