Work has started on the construction of a new £11m health centre on the outskirts of Norwich.

NHS Property Services (NHSPS); NHS Norfolk & Waveney; and developer, Darwin Group, has begun groundworks at the site of the new Rackheath Health Hub, which is due to open next year.

The hub will house primary care and community services and will be delivered through offsite construction methods.

The building will be made up of 45 modules making up around 16,000sq ft of internal floor space.

The scheme will provide essential new infrastructure to the local area, where it is also expected that additional housing will be delivered over the coming months and years.

Barry Clark, capital manager for national major projects at NHSPS, said: “The new centre will offer both existing and future residents in Rackheath a state-of-the-art facility that, to its core, is sustainable and modern.

“Through our partnership we will be able to help health professionals deliver the care that patients deserve in space that is welcoming, sustainable and fit for purpose.”

The new facility will include modernised consultation and examination rooms, community areas, and district nurse facilities, as well as back-office and shared space.

Paul Higham, associate director of estates at NHS Norfolk and Waveney, said “We are pleased to be working together with local partners to continue to progress the planned development for a new healthcare facility in the Rackheath area that will further improve residents’ access to health and care services now, and for the future.

“The planned Hub at Rackheath will help to transform how health and care services are delivered, bringing services closer to where people live, enabling more-joined-up care and supporting residents to access information and wider services that will help them to live healthy and well.”

Darwin Group was appointed by NHSPS and NHS Norfolk & Waveney to deliver the build.

The company’s deputy chief executive, Jim Pierce, said: “This has been in the planning for some time now and, when open, it will offer patients a state-of-the-art medical facility with excellent working conditions for all staff.

“We also understand how important this medical facility will be for the growing population of Rackheath and the wider community as it will help with future demand and medical care in the area for many years to come.”