A CAMPAIGN has been launched to get a doctor's surgery in Catchgate, near Stanley.

Derwentside District Councillor Bill Proud is backing community groups who want a GP service in Catchgate Communal Rooms.

He has vowed to raise the £30,000 he estimates it will cost to employ a doctor and rent the space.

Yesterday he launched a campaign which will start with a petition to be submitted to Derwentside Primary Care Trust.

It will be distributed around the local community by members of Catchgate Residents' Association and Catchgate Partnership.

Coun Proud said: "We need a health centre in Catchgate because there is an ageing population.

"Residents are getting older and more people are moving to the area with the new housing developments."

Coun Proud has written to Derwentside District Council, which owns the building, to ask for permission to use the land.

The council was unable to comment on the matter when contacted by The Northern Echo.

Derwentside Primary Care Trust (PCT) is currently consulting residents about plans to build a new health centre in Stanley that will provide GP, dental and nursing services, therapies, family planning, hospital outpatient services, including consultant clinics, and X-ray facilities.

Coun Proud said: "Health matters are critical, and an area like Catchgate needs its own surgery."

A spokesman for the PCT said the trust and council had both carried out surveys about services in Catchgate.

She said: "No gaps in service provision have been identified and the area is quite well served by existing GP surgeries in the vicinity.

"However, through the surveys, we found that people with mobility problems have raised concerns about getting to the practices.

"We are happy to work with people and discuss the matter with residents if there are any gaps in service provision."