The £840,000 project began late last year when the local unit for people with mental health problems was transferred from Pelican Lane and Sandleford Hospital to the community hospital, allowing the service to provide a one-stop shop. Specialist care is available for the elderly, adults, along with a day centre.

All will be managed by West Berkshire Locality Manager for mental health Mary Bennett, who said: “Our accommodation in Newbury is very poor at the moment, which makes it hard to meet the sorts of standards that we need for modern mental health care. A move to the new hospital will really open up the way for improvements, enabling us to extend services and provide rooms that are comfortable as well as functional.”

Ambulance 999s rocket

Emergency calls to Royal Berkshire ambulance teams have gone up 7% in the last year. Local paramedics managed to get to three quarters within 8 minutes, and to 99% within the target 19 minutes. Four out of five reached hospital within 15 minutes. Neighbouring ambulance stations did not record similar rises, and Berkshire’s figures are above the national average.