Royal opening for new health centre

His Royal Highness The Duke of Gloucester meets staff from Dr Ko's dental surgery

3 More Image(s) In Gallery

His Royal Highness The Duke of Gloucester has officially opened the borough’s newest centre in Rochdale.

During a visit to The Croft Shifa Health Centre, on Friday 26 March, His Royal Highness took the opportunity to meet patients and staff from a range of services, including Speech and Language Therapy and Children’s Physiotherapy, as he explored the new centre.

He was also introduced to representatives from Brahmlift, the Eric Wright Group and Nightingale Associates, who have all played a major contribution in the construction of the building and gave insightful background on the development.

As an architect himself, His Royal Highness commented on the ‘impressive’ £8.4million development and its modern facilities, as well as its importance in keeping people out of hospital.

John Pierce, Chair man of NHS Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale said: “We are delighted to welcome His Royal Highness to our newest health centre in the borough. We are very proud of our latest development and really appreciate the support His Royal Highness has shown by taking the time to visit us.”

An open day followed the official opening ceremony the next day, giving local residents the chance to see all the new centre has to offer.

Visitors, including the Mayor and Mayoress of Rochdale, packed into the new centre on Belfield Road, to find out more about the health services available as well as being able to pick up plenty of tips on leading a healthy lifestyle.

“It was great to see so many local residents turn out for the open day,” added Mr Pierce. “This centre has been built for local people and it’s encouraging to see the support they are giving us.”

Visitors were also able to get fit with rowing and dance competitions, thanks to the support of Link4Life.