A NEW health centre in Basildon’s former Debenhams will help ensure the town centre thrives for years to come, a council has claimed after plans were given the green light.

On Wednesday night, Basildon Council’s planning committee unanimously approved plans to transform the Eastgate Shopping Centre’s empty Debenhams shop into a new health care facility.

Now, the council is confident it will help create booming trade in the town centre alongside Basildon’s new cinema and plans to create hundreds of new homes.

Craig Rimmer, Conservative councillor responsible for the Pitsea South East ward, is hoping the health facilities will help increase passing trade for businesses nearby.

He said: “I think it is brilliant news. Our whole vision is of Basildon is to have a more mixed-use town centre.

“This health facility is part of that, and it complements the entertainment side with investment in Towngate, the Vue cinema, and the food and beverage units. It is all part of the re-purposing of town centre.”

The approval comes just weeks after it was announced that Vue would takeover the empty Empire cinema in East Walk.

The council us also focuses on homes being created in the town centre, with plans approved for a new tower block of flats next to the new cinema and plans for 245 homes at the Great Oaks retail park.

The new health centre will offer both NHS and private healthcare services across three-floors. It will offer minor surgery, endoscopy, and ophthalmology through to major surgery such as knee and hip replacements.

It will also offer diagnostics suites with provision for MRI scans and CT scans. The works are set to take “around 18 months” to complete, and the facility will create 300 new jobs.

Concerns were raised by one part of the NHS around the impact the new facility would have on Basildon Hospital in terms of employment.

Mr Rimmer added: “It was one part of the NHS that had concerns. It was about workforce and whether the workforce would be attracted to work there instead of Basildon Hospital.

"However, the applicant said this wouldn’t be the case. They want to attract more workers to the borough and not take workers.”