The government has pledged £102 million to improve facilities at more than 1,000 GP surgeries across the country.
This investment, hailed as the largest of its kind in five years, aims to expand and modernise buildings, enabling GPs to see more patients.
The funding will support upgrades and the creation of additional space for patient treatment. The first projects are slated to commence in the summer of 2025, forming a key part of the government's broader NHS improvement plan.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting acknowledged the challenges ahead, stating that fixing the NHS will be "a long road, but this Government is putting in the work."
He said: “These are simple fixes for our GP surgeries, but for too long they were left to ruin, allowing waiting lists to build and stopping doctors treating more patients.
“It is only because of the necessary decisions we took in the Budget that we are able to invest in GP surgeries, start tackling the 8am scramble and deliver better services for patients.
“The extra investment and reform this Government is making, as part of its plan for change, will transform our NHS so it can once again be there for you when you need it.”
In a round of media appearances, Wes Streeting told LBC Radio that extra money for GP surgeries will be used for extra consultation rooms and refurbishments. He added he would work with local health bodies to identify “the practices where we know these upgrades would make a difference and will be needed”.
Wes Streeting later told Sky News that being able to offer up to eight million more appointments through reforming buildings was “an estimate”.
He added: “Once we’ve got these practices built, we should be seeing up to eight million more appointments.
“Over the course of the next year or two, I would hope to see a significant increase in those GP appointments.”
Mr Streeting said the NHS waiting list results so far were encouraging, with the hospital waiting list dropping for the last six months. He said he wanted to reassure people that “change has begun” and “the best is still to come”.
Ruth Rankine, the primary care director at the NHS Confederation said that doctors and their teams will welcome the cash boost to “deliver high quality care, closer to home, and fit for the 21st century”.
She added: “If we are serious about shifting care from hospital to community, from sickness to prevention, and from analogue to digital, then sustained investment in primary and community estates, equipment and technology is vital.”
Last month, Mr Streeting said that he hopes access to GP services will be “wildly different” before the next general election, but would not commit to a closer timeline.
