Plans for 24 hour ambulance first responder amenity at Fleetwood community hub

A new state-of-the-art youth and community centre based in the former Fleetwood Hospital could include a 24-hour first responder amenity run by the North West Ambulance Service.

An application has been lodged with Wyre planners to vary a condition in a planning application to allow for a change in opening hours to accommodate the ambulance service project.

It would be just one part of ambitious proposals to create The Hub community centre and promote even more activities within the Pharos Street building, since was bought by charity the Fleetwood Trust.

The overall planning application itself is for a change of use of part of the ground floor from ‘residential institution’ to a multi-purpose facility for community use.

What the new Hub would include

That includes a cafe, teaching kitchen, co-working space, multi-purpose studios, meeting rooms and offices.

Last year the Fleetwood Trust announced exciting plans for a new youth centre at the premises, as part of the trust’s wider plans to breathe life into the ageing building.

Partners in the hub project include the NHS, Blackpool and Fylde College, The Pantry Food Bank, Regenda Homes, Healthier Fleetwood and MacMillan Cancer Support and Blackpool, Fylde, and Wyre Volunteer Centre.

In a design and access statement on behalf of the first responder application, architect Mason Gillibrand said: “This application seeks consent for the operating hours of a specific area at the rear of the building to be extended to a full 24-hour period.

“This is so that NWAS (North West Ambulance Service) can move to the building to operate a first responder service.

“The Fleetwood Trust are extremely keen to bring such a key community health care service to The Hub and the only way to make that happen is for the hours to be amended so that they can operate their new responder unit.”

What the North West Ambulance says

In a supporting comment, Chris Baker, estate manager at the North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust, said: “North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) has recently completed the development of its new ambulance hub on Parkinson Way, Blackpool.

“The development allows the trust to centralise resources for the Blackpool, Fylde and Wyre areas at one site thus enabling better working practices, improvements in resource allocation and improved training facilities.”

He said the stations at Lytham, Fleetwood, Thornton and Wesham would become surplus to requirements and would be sold.

However, NWAS recognised that maintaining a presence in the vicinity of the current stations would provide the best approach to providing emergency care for local residents.

The site at Fleetwood Hospital was identified as a suitable site for Fleetwood, not as a base for crews but one they would use on an ad-hoc basis between emergency calls.