Plans go in for veterinary hospital at business park
A planning application has been submitted to Birmingham City Council for a state of the art veterinary hospital on a brownfield site at the southern gateway to West Longbridge Business Park which will create around 150 jobs.
Following £20m infrastructure investment at West Longbridge in partnership with the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) earlier in 2021, it is the first commercial development being brought forward by developer St. Modwen.
When complete, West Longbridge Business Park will create up to 5,000 jobs.
The hospital will feature research, treatment, diagnostic, laboratory and administrative space and will have the latest medical equipment including CT and MRI scanners.
Planning permission for the building is being sought by St. Modwen on behalf of IVC Evidensia, Europe’s leading veterinary care provider with 21,000 staff based across 12 countries, including the UK.
The proposal will also see regeneration of a three acre site that acts as a gateway for the wider West Longbridge Business Park. Subject to planning approval, construction will start on the building in 2022 with the first animals treated at the facility in 2023.
West Longbridge Business Park is part of a wider regeneration of the former MG Rover West Works following a £6m investment by the WMCA to unlock the land for development. In addition to the business park, the investment will see a residential neighbourhood of 350 homes created.
Elliot Sellars, development director at St. Modwen, said: “This is a key first element of West Longbridge and will become a real centrepiece for that part of the town. It also has the potential to be a real beacon of veterinary excellence in medicine and treatment.
“Its state of the art design and facilities will be a major draw in the veterinary sector and provide new jobs and opportunities for local people. We’re continuing discussions with other occupiers as we look to deliver more jobs in Longbridge and establish a high-quality business park.
“Having a new kind of facility like this will help to truly put Longbridge on the map. We believe it will be a great asset and boost for the local community and economy, building on the progress and ongoing investment we have already delivered here.”
John Turkington, head of referrals UK & Ireland at IVC Evidensia, added: “Our new hospital will be one of the leading veterinary facilities in the UK. It will have some of the finest 24/7 facilities and embrace the latest technology to deliver the best diagnoses and treatments possible.
“Many of our referral centres are established leaders in their field and our new state-of-the-art hospital in Birmingham which will be staffed with experienced, high-calibre teams, has been designed to enable the best outcomes through working collaboratively in a sustainable rewarding working environment that produces the excellence in client and patient care which we have become known for.”
