BUILDING work could begin this year on a new community medical centre for Upton following a decision to upgrade the current outline planning application to a full, detailed one.

The new application will be submitted to Malvern Hills District Council next month and is expected to be considered by the southern area planning sub-committee in the spring.

Peter Icke, of Birmingham-based architects Gould Singleton Partnership, which is drawing up the plans, said the decision to submit a full application followed a request for more information by the council.

"It can speed things up but it's more of a commitment by the local authority that it's going ahead," he said. "It's a positive view from them. They are encouraging it to be taken to the next stage by committing the doctors to getting the information required.

"They're not going to say it's okay for sure but we have all seen it as a positive sign that they have asked to get to the detailed stage."

An artist's impression of the new medical centre was made public last July, showing a futuristic complex at the bottom of Tunnel Hill. This would house all the town's primary health care services with facilities for around 80 medical staff, including doctors, dentists, chiropodists, social workers and health visitors, serving more than 10,000 patients.

It would also provide a "crisis room" for use by GPs, which would double as a crisis management centre in times of flooding or other emergencies.

Roy Singleton, another partner at the architects' firm, said the application should go before the planning sub- committee in spring. If approved, work could start this year with the centre fully operational by summer 2003.

However, the Council for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) remains firmly opposed to the idea, saying it would increase both road traffic and the risk of flooding.

Frank Hill, secretary of Malvern Hills CPRE, said: "We would prefer to see smaller medical facilities provided in both Upton and Tunnel Hill which would be more convenient to both communities, would not cause increased car use and would not spoil the countryside."

Meanwhile, the capacity of the School Lane surgery is to be increased by the erection of temporary buildings, which will open next month.