Construction starts on £2m animal health centre

A new animal treatment centre is under construction on the Fylde Coast. Norcross Vets, which has four practices in the area, is investing £2m in a new facility to provide the area with a state-of-the art resource.

The new centre is being built on land off Norcross Road, overlooking the Amounderness Way roundabout, on the site of a former farmhouse. Norcross Vets is already operating its 24-hour service from a temporary building on the site, having moved from its previous headquarters on Blackpool Old Road in Poulton where it operated as Milne and Shine for 25 years.

Designed by Thornton-based architect Eric Forster and Gavin Lemon of GL Design, Glasgow, the two-storey, 12,000 sq ft building will incorporate six consulting rooms, a large treatment room, three state-of-the-art theatres, an imaging suite - including digital x-ray, ultrasound, endoscopy, and CT - a chemotherapy unit, a hydrotherapy pool, isolation facilities, extensive animal accommodation and office space. The upper storey will house a lecture theatre and staff facilities, including accommodation for the on-site vets and nurses.

Employing 20 staff, the business also has practices in Fleetwood, Cleveleys and recently opened in Stalmine. Already offering 24-hour care, seven days a week, the veterinary centre will provide a local base for visiting consultants from elsewhere in the region, and enable owners to visit pets who require several days’ treatment.