South Hams District Council’s Follaton House headquarters will be used by the South Dartmoor and Totnes and South Hams Primary Care Networks as a COVID vaccination centre from Wednesday, it has been announced.

The council has supported the community throughout the COVID pandemic and with Follaton House being located on the outskirts of Totnes, with an easily accessible car park, they were happy to offer their offices as a community vaccine hub.

The new centre will welcome its first patients from Wednesday, April 7 and is planned to operate over the summer period. Each day the new site is in operation double the vaccinations are expected to be carried out for local residents.

A spokesperson for South Hams District Council said: “We’re absolutely delighted to be able to be offer our office space to our local team of GP surgeries so that more of our community are able to get their COVID vaccines as quickly as possible. One of our top priorities is the health and wellbeing of our residents, so for us it was an easy decision to make.

“As a council our staff have had the opportunity to work flexibly, from home or the office, as part of an agile working strategy for a number of years. As a result of the strategy, the majority of staff were able to carry out their normal work from home.

“When the pandemic arrived, we simply asked all our staff and Members to work from home, using video conferencing for communicating and Council meetings. This temporary unused office space is now being put to excellent use with the vaccination centre.

“Being on the edge of Totnes, we’re well placed for quick access to other towns with easy, level parking. The building’s ground floor has separate rooms just off the reception, so the more frail or elderly can be treated quickly and easily. While the upstairs office space has plenty of room for the vaccination stations, before returning via a one-way system back to the car park, without having to meet another person. There’s plenty of room to move around safely, which is what makes Follaton House a perfect setting for a vaccination centre.”

Two Primary Care Networks have been involved in making the vaccination centre a reality. One being the South Dartmoor and Totnes Primary Care Network, which includes GP surgeries from, Ashburton, Buckfastleigh, Catherine House, Leatside and South Brent. Along with the South Hams Primary Care Network which includes surgeries from Chillington, Dartmouth, Modbury, Norton Brook and Redfern.

Patients at these surgeries will be offered vaccinations at Follaton House that will allow the surgeries to double their current capacity.

Initially the site will be for patients who are due their second dose and patients at these surgeries will be contacted to inform them of the change in their location.

The Local Vaccination Service will move from St Boniface, Buckfast, to Follaton House, Totnes, from Wednesday, April 7, and patients will be contacted by their practice to confirm this when providing an appointment for their second appointment.