A high-tech GP surgery is being planned for the Oakham area.

The 'future-proof' Rutland Medi-Tech centre would serve as a hub for 'health and innovation', according to Rutland County Council, providing a space for clinical GP services as well as research and development.

If approved, the facility would include a suite of typical GP services spaces, including consultation rooms, theatres, and diagnostic and recovery areas. The first floor would be reserved for lettable rooms for other medical professionals.

Rutland County Council, which is behind the planning application, has emphasised the importance of maintaining the centre as a multi-purpose facility, to boost the local economy through medical enterprise.

"To safeguard the dual-purpose nature of the building," official planning documents say, "lease arrangements will include R&D and performance-related targets for occupiers, ensuring the facility continues to foster innovation and economic growth, rather than evolving into a purely clinical or health-only space."

The Rutland Medi-Tech centre would be built at the Oakham Enterprise Park, two miles north of the town centre, on the site of the now-demolished Ashwell Prison.

Rutland County Council would lead the building's early construction phase, before handing over its operational control to Patient Care Locally, a community interest company based in Leicestershire.

The project would be funded through a £3.77 million 'Levelling Up Fund' grant.

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