Orsett Hospital's minor injuries unit closed on 30 October and reopened in Grays on 2 November. Its new home, opening hours, parking and the 2027 plan.
The minor injuries unit at Orsett Hospital, which treats patients from Brentwood as well as Thurrock, Basildon and Castle Point, closes for the last time at 12 noon on Friday 30 October. It reopens at 10am on Monday 2 November in the John Tallack Centre at Thurrock Community Hospital, Long Lane, Grays.
For the two and a half days in between there is no minor injuries unit. NHS Essex says that anyone with a minor injury from midday on Friday until 10am on Monday should contact NHS 111, which will direct them to the right service, or go to the emergency department at Basildon Hospital.
Same hours, same team
Once it reopens, the unit keeps its hours of 10am to 7.30pm every day, with walk-in care for minor injuries including cuts, sprains, minor burns and suspected broken bones. NHS Essex says it will be run by the same team of staff. The service is provided by North East London NHS Foundation Trust (NELFT).
The move cost about £1 million, national funding that NHS Essex Integrated Care Board secured for the relocation and for work on the John Tallack Centre. NELFT says the new space has a much bigger and more comfortable waiting area, a purpose-built wound care room with its own shower facilities, and a dedicated plaster room. Patients who need an x-ray will go next door to the Community Diagnostic Centre, and the footpath between the two buildings has been levelled.
Gill Burns, Service Director at NELFT, said:
“We’re thrilled to be moving our minor injuries service into a modern, fit-for-purpose healthcare facility that will support safer and more effective care delivery and we’re looking forward to welcoming our first patients. Our staff are looking forward working in new purpose-built clinical environment that is designed to improve patient privacy, dignity and comfort.
“The improved facilities coupled with closer access to diagnostic services will enable us to provide a step-up in patient care and experience that will be positive for our staff too.”
Will there be room to park?
NHS Essex has moved to reassure people about parking, and has set out the figures. There are 251 parking spaces across the Thurrock Community Hospital site, some of them a short walk from the John Tallack Centre. Staff at the unit will park elsewhere so that the spaces nearest the centre can go to patients as far as possible.
An audit during the peak midday hour in the last week of September found between 35 and 62 spaces free across the site each day. NHS Essex estimates the unit needs about 27 spaces across a whole day, around three an hour, and says it is confident there is enough room. The board has also worked with Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT), which runs the hospital site, on access and signage.
An urgent treatment centre from April 2027
The move is the first step in a bigger change. NHS Essex plans to turn the unit into an Urgent Treatment Centre from April 2027, treating minor illnesses as well as minor injuries, with longer opening hours. It expects the centre to see almost 54,000 patients a year, against around 29,000 who use the minor injuries unit now.
Samantha Goldberg, Executive Director of Commercial, Estates and Resilience at NHS Essex Integrated Care Board, said:
“Thanks to the £1million funding secured by NHS Essex and a great team effort by local NHS organisations we’re moving the MIU into a new healthcare environment designed to meet current clinical standards and support future service development.
“As well as improved facilities, patients will see a more streamlined service with the MIU working closely with the Community Diagnostic Centre to provide care, tests and treatment in one place.
“This move is more than a change of location. It is part of our five-year plan to expand urgent care services for local people. We plan to build on this move by developing the service into an Urgent Treatment Centre that will care for minor illnesses as well as minor injuries, helping more patients and diverting people from hospital emergency departments.”
At a glance
- Orsett Hospital MIU closes: 12 noon, Friday 30 October
- Between then and 10am Monday 2 November: call NHS 111, or go to Basildon Hospital emergency department
- New unit opens: 10am, Monday 2 November, John Tallack Centre, Thurrock Community Hospital, Long Lane, Grays
- Hours: 10am to 7.30pm every day, walk-in
- Treats: cuts, sprains, minor burns, suspected broken bones
More about NHS Essex Integrated Care Board is on the NHS Essex website.
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