Nicholas Soames joined the local community of Handcross, Balcolmbe and Slaugham to celebrate the formal opening and blessing of the new Dumbledore Primary Care Centre yesterday.

Mr Soames, local resident and MP for Mid Sussex, was Guest of Honour at the ceremony that was also attended by clinicians, health practitioners, dignitaries, community leaders and other interested parties from the area. He joined Dr Rob Morris, GP at the Primary Care Centre and Victor Newman, Director of Cathedral Healthcare, the specialist developers who funded and developed the new Centre, in a ribbon-cutting which marked the official opening of the recently completed centre.

Nicholas Soames said; “I was delighted to be asked to open this wonderful new facility which will serve the local people very well with its dedicated team of doctors, nurses and all those others who make this health centre so wonderful.”

Located on the edge of Handcross village, the new Dumbledore Primary Care Centre, completed and in operation since mid-2007, has already proved itself to be a major improvement for the local GP Practice. The 1045sq m premises boasts state-of-the-art medical facilities, including an NHS dental practice, and meets all the requirements of the Doctors and the PCT, along with the wide patient group.

The Centre provides multiple areas of care, including six consulting rooms, a minor operations suite, an ambulance bay, in-house dispensing pharmacy and a dedicated medical training unit. There are also innovative services housed here, such as a debt-counselling centre.

Dr Rob Morris added; “It is wonderful to see our vision for the Practice’s patient services finally realised and able to expand into the future. There are many individuals and groups who have made all this possible and to them I am truly grateful”.

“This celebration is a perfect way to thank everyone who has worked so hard on the project and a time to reflect on what has been accomplished;” according to Victor Newman. “It is marvellous to see the building in full swing and to see how the new-found space and accommodation has truly benefited both staff and patients in the standard of healthcare services that can be offered. Cathedral Healthcare have tried to produce the best building for Handcross in an environmentally-sensitive location and are especially proud of the result. We hope it helps set a new high standard for Community Healthcare service buildings in Sussex”.

The formal blessing of the Centre was carried out by Rev Gary Simmons. More than 50 guests attended the formal opening, at which £145 was also raised for the Kagando Mission Hospital Foundation in Western Uganda – a charity supported by the doctors at the surgery.

The name Dumbledore originates from the old English for bumblebee and was selected by the Doctors and their colleagues as they feel it conveys the Country Practice and it’s work; busy and productive for the common good.