A new urgent treatment centre (UTC) will soon be opening in Stafford.

The facility is set to open at County Hospital in Spring 2027 with work due to begin next month.

Treating both adults and children, the new UTC will provide same day treatment for a range of minor illnesses and injuries meaning locals can access care closer to home.

Open seven days a week, the centre will build on the facilities already available at County Hospital and will work alongside the existing Emergency Department, so patients can be assessed and directed to the service that they need.

The UTC is the result of a lengthy campaign by Stafford MP Leigh Ingham, who has been fighting for better healthcare services in Stafford for several years.

Ingham said: "This is amazing news for people in Stafford.

"I have been working so hard to secure the funding for this urgent treatment centre, raising this issue before I was elected as the MP, and I'm so pleased and proud that it will be delivered.

"I know that people want to see better healthcare here in Stafford, particularly closer to home.

"This is a major investment and will mean thousands more families can access the care they need locally.

"The UTC will strengthen the services already available here and will provide treatment for a huge range of non-life-threatening conditions and same-day care.

"I look forward to seeing the positive impact it will have on the area."

County Hospital sees thousands of patients each year and the UTC is expected to help more people receive care in the most appropriate setting.

Recent data found that 47% of people who attend the emergency department were potentially suitable for treatment through the UTC meaning the new facility should help to reduce pressure on the County and Royal Stoke A&E departments.

Helen Ashley, acting chief executive at University Hospitals of North Midlands, which runs County Hospital said: "The new Urgent Treatment Centre is an important development for County Hospital and will mean more people in Stafford can receive the care they need closer to home.

"It forms part of a wider approach bringing together urgent care, our Emergency Department, same-day emergency medicine and specialist frailty services.

"By assessing patients when they arrive and directing them quickly to the service best suited to their needs, we can provide more care locally while ensuring patients who need specialist or emergency treatment receive the right care in the right place."

Header image via Jonathan Hutchins on Geograph