A NEW dental surgery could soon open up in Bridgwater – at the same time that a former dental practice could be converted into more flats, writes Daniel Mumby, Local Democracy Reporter.

Holloway House Dental Surgery in Minehead has applied to open up a new dental practice in Bridgwater by converting the existing house at 62 Wembdon Road, opposite The Quantock public house.

This comes as J. T. Retail Properties Ltd. has applied to turn the former Brent House Surgery on King Street (which lies within the town’s conservation area) into five flats.

Sedgemoor District Council is expected to make a ruling on both sets of plans later in the spring.

The new practice, which will replace the existing five-bedroom house, could create up to five new jobs – though it is unclear how many of these will be filled by existing staff.

A spokesman for Architectural Studio said: “The applicant currently has a successful dental surgery in Minehead, which attracts patients from all over Somerset.

“Many of the existing patients are from the Bridgwater area that need to travel to Minehead for regular check-ups and treatment.

“The purpose of this application is to provide more surgery treatment rooms to suit the growing demand of the business and reduce the amount of travelling for Bridgwater-based patients.

“No alterations would be made to the external appearance of the building and only minor alterations would be made internally. The site has sufficient on-site vehicle parking for patients and staff.”

If approved, the surgery will end up providing both NHS and private treatment for a sizeable catchment area across western Bridgwater – including more than 1,000 new homes which will be built either side of the A39 Quantock Road.

Bridgwater currently has a dental access centre for patients who are unable to access NHS treatment through a regular practice – one of only three such facilities operating full-time across the county (the others being in Taunton and Yeovil, with a part-time facility in Frome).

However, the town has been hit hard by the increasing shortage of NHS dentists across the whole of Somerset, making it harder for people to secure routine appointments.

Health bosses admitted in January that persuading dentists to work in the county was “like trying to convince a turkey to vote for Christmas”, blaming a range of factors from rising opportunities in the private sector to the dental contract reforms brought in by the-then Labour government in 2006.

Further into the town centre, J. T. Retail Properties Ltd. has applied to create further flats within the former Brent House Surgery, which is grade two listed.

Bridgwater Mercury: Former Brent House Surgery At 14 King Street In Bridgwater. CREDIT: Google Maps. Free to use for all BBC wire partners.

Permission was granted to Cranleigh Gardens Medical Centre in May 2018 to turn the building into four flats; however, the developer now wishes to sub-divide one of the upper floor properties into two to create an additional dwelling.

A spokesman for Lyndon Brett Chartered Surveyors (representing the applicant) said: “The existing building will essentially remain as it is, without any forms of demolition or extension works being undertaken.

“It will therefore adopt the same built line as existing and will not therefore be dominant in terms of overlooking and or overshadowing to that which currently exists.”

 The council is expected to make a decision on both sets of proposals before the summer.