Saxmundham

A growing Saxmundham needs more social ‘infrastructure’ – like schools and health services

In early stage consultation on what residents think about our town, it soon became clear that there is a strong feeling that the town has grown considerably in recent years, but without the necessary “infrastructure” being put in place. By this, people mean not only the physical stuff such as roads etc., but also the social provision needed for and by a growing population. Like health and education.

One of the early tasks for those of us involved with preparing the ground for the Neighbourhood Plan is to understand clearly what the “requirements” are for our town to get the new schools and health services that will be required – especially if, as seems to be the District Council’s intent, the town is to grow substantially over the next 10 to 20 years.

And we must not forget that the actual town of Saxmundham serves a wider area of villages and small communities – all of which are also likely to increase in size over the same period. We are told that a new primary school would be provided by the County Council if around 800 new dwellings are to be built – but we need to get the baseline clear first, i.e. how full the local primary schools are, and how many young children are likely to reach school age over the next few years.

Still more concerning is the situation over health services. Earlier plans for a new health centre on North Entrance came, alas, to nothing. But undoubtedly the doctor’s surgery in Lambsale Meadow will come under ever greater pressure – from a growing population in general, and from a growing population of older and vulnerable citizens in particular. 

We have a working group on community and public services, which will also look at the wider range of community services in Saxmundham.

If you would like to volunteer to take part in this group, the convenor is Steve Palmer; please write to us at saxmundhamplan@gmail.com