The opening of a GPs' surgery at Sidmouth’s Victoria Hospital is moving a step closer, according to NHS Devon, after being delayed for several months.

Sid Valley Practice closed its Blackmore surgery in November last year and planned to move into new consulting rooms at the Victoria Hospital soon afterwards.

But there have been delays with installing IT equipment and connecting the computers to the hospital’s network – a project that is being managed by NHS Devon, not the Sid Valley Practice.

Anxious local residents have contacted the Herald expressing their concerns about the lack of a GP surgery in the town centre for patients who have difficulty travelling to the Sid Valley Practice’s Beacon surgery at Stowford.

Staff at the Sid Valley Practice have also been unhappy about the delay. A spokesperson for the practice said: “We share our patients’ frustrations and thank them for their patience while we wait for services to get up and running … we are regularly asking for a date to go live and updates on the problems. We are pushing to get things resolved as soon as possible. Unfortunately the delay is with agencies out of our control.”

The Herald contacted NHS Devon to ask if there was a timetable for the work to be completed.

A spokesperson for NHS Devon said: “There has been a delay in opening the new Sid Valley practice's consultation rooms at Sidmouth Hospital – an extension of the existing service at Beacon Medical Centre, which remains fully operational on Sedemuda Road. 

“The delay is unfortunate, but mainly stems from difficulties during the setup of the broadband service and is beyond our immediate control. 

“We are working closely with BT Openreach and we expect the final stages of installation to proceed very shortly, with the IT service due to go live at the end of May.”

Once the technology is up and running, Sid Valley Practice will be able to move forward with its preparations for opening the consulting rooms, but no date for this has been announced yet.