Plans for the £75m first phase of the Western Way development in Bury St Edmunds has been given the go-ahead to progress to the next stage.

West Suffolk Council’s cabinet voted unanimously to move to the next stage of tendering for the initial phase of the scheme.

The first phase is budgeted to cost £75 million and include a leisure centre, West Suffolk’s branch of the Suffolk Archives, and potentially office space and a preschool.

The NHS had plans to provide a large community health facility on the site.

In September 2022, it explained it needed more time to finish the business case due to new financial rules, meaning the health facility will not be provided in phase one.

Councillor Sara Mildmay-White, portfolio holder for housing and strategic health, said: “I just hope the health and wellbeing centre comes to fruition.

“We know we have a deficit of GPs in this area. I am hoping the NHS will continue to engage with us and provide a large health and wellbeing centre in this development.”

Cllr Robert Everitt, portfolio holder for families and communities, said he would be “very surprised” if the NHS pulled out of the plans for the health and wellbeing centre entirely."

Cllr Everitt said: “The major issue with health and wellbeing is getting out there and into communities.

“We have proved the point at Mildenhall and Howard Estate’s community centre that health centres within developments like Western Way are well used and well received.”

The Mildenhall Hub has a health centre and the Howard Estate community centre in Bury includes an NHS clinic room.

West Suffolk Council approved an updated business case for phase one of Western Way last December.