Inside new Helston health facility in Budgens supermarket

The former shop level of the building in the Trengrouse Way car park is being turned into a new medical facility, to include purpose-built GP practice for the patients of Meneage Street Surgery, using around three-quarters of the original supermarket floor space.

The rest of the upper ground floor will host three community rooms that will support well-being related activities, including for physical and mental health, plus meeting and social spaces.

Project managing the redevelopment is Jonathan Kearsley, a Coverack boy who Cornish roots have influenced how the entire build has panned out.

Jonathan was first approached by David Turnbull, director of South Kerrier Alliance (SKA), around Christmas 2023.

The pair had previously worked together on the Old Cattle Market building in Helston, which was opened in 2012 by SKA, on time and on budget, with Jonathan as project manager.

This time, David had his sights set on the old Budgens building.

“It was an opportunity for Helston that he asked my advice about really doing, or not. There was a finite budget, which was significant as it was less than half what was originally quoted by a quantity surveyor,” Jonathan recalled.

“We had no clear plans, just an idea we wanted to find a tenant and from that we could have cash flow to deliver really meaningful community benefit.”

Project manager Jonathan Kearsley in what will be the new reception area (Image: Helston Packet) Despite the almost impossible challenge, the opportunity was too good to miss and they jumped in with both feet – bringing local businesses along with them.

“We very quickly found Helston Medical Practice as a tenant,” said Jonathan. “They got their own designers to design the interior, so we knew effectively we were working off their plan.

“We’re building it to their specification. Everything is done with a purpose and an open book policy, which has enabled us to be transparent about costs and practices.”

MJ Medical in Truro put together the original plan, with Jonathan adding: “They really understand what’s required for a medical practice.”

Poynton Bradbury in St Ives were then the architects who got the project the necessary planning permissions, with Jonathan describing them as “exceptional” at dealing with the complexities and the need to incorporate changes into the design quickly.

Designing everything with purpose has meant every aspect of user need has been thought about – such as making one of the toilets large enough to include a hoist. Brail and contrasting colours are being incorporated for those with sight requirements.

The team have been working with Access Cornwall throughout, meaning every decision made has been in consultation with the people who will be affected.

27 extra windows have been added to the building (Image: Helston Packet) The building’s environmental credentials are also particularly important to this project.

The Old Cattle Market received a BREEAM Excellent rating, given to buildings that demonstrate environmental responsibility and sustainable practices, and it has become something of a trademark for Jonathan with all his subsequent projects.

Since 2016, nothing he has been in charge of has received lower than an EPC A+ rating – the energy performance certificate that gives every building, whether residential or commercial, an energy efficiency rating.

Jonathan was determined to not only achieve it with this project too but to make it the most efficient it could possibly be, and set his sights on achieving net carbon zero.

What has made it more challenging, however, is that the building in question is an old supermarket – not usually known for their green credentials.

“The biggest challenge has been taking an old supermarket built in 1984 and bringing it up to that standard,” explained Jonathan.

The medical facility will include 19 consulting rooms (Image: Helston Packet) Key to this build has been the use of suppliers and tradespeople in and around Helston and the very near area, which has helped keep the cost down – as well as retain the work and money in the local economy. Recognising it as a community project, all have tried to keep the costs as low as possible.

Alex Carey of A Carey Electrical in Helston is working on the electrics with his team, and AllGlass Cornwall, also based in Helston, has provided the glass for the building – with a big feature of project being the introduction of 27 new windows into what was a windowless supermarket. Concrete columns and cross-bracing have been added to give extra support.

Jonathan said that, perhaps contrary to expectations, one of the biggest issues with such a building as this was not heat loss but how to keep fresh air flowing while still retaining maximum efficiency once everything was sealed and insulated.

To combat this, a mechanical ventilation heat recovery system is being introduced, which takes stale air and effectively recycles it into fresh air – with up to 98 per cent of the heat retained this way.

With the air in medical buildings having to be changed eight times every hour, getting this right has been crucial.

Enough wires to power a medical centre! (Image: Helston Packet)

Matt Humphrey at MBA Consulting Engineers in Truro been working closely with Jonathan, who said: “He’s been here whenever we need him. He’s looked at the solution and allowed us to progress this almost with immediate effect, while giving us notes on what’s appropriate.

“That’s been a huge advantage to the project.”

He compared the project to “almost like a DIY SOS episode” in that everyone has pulled together to make it happen, adding: “We have got people in the community who are absolutely 110 per cent behind the project.”

This is to the extent that one local teacher is working his weekends to support it by clearing and brushing up the site, ready for the builders to get started again come Monday, and Jonathan has also employed a number of local lads who approached him asking for work and are now learning new skills they can use in the future.

“We couldn’t be doing the project without all these guys involved,” he added. “They’re just the best construction team I’ve ever had.”

How far the floor level has been raised - and it will go up even further (Image: Helston Packet) One of the biggest parts of the build, which sets it apart from many others, is its ground source heat system. Not so different, you might think, with this method of heating becoming increasingly popular – but not every building has 12 holes dug into the ground, going 108 metres down. Added together, 1.3km of hole has been dug across the 12 sites.

Coming up from these was 41 cubic metres of what can only be described as dark grey sludge, weighing about 80 tonnes in total, which Jonathan and the teacher moved by hand in wheelbarrows into skips.

“It was crazy, and necessary,” laughed Jonathan.

Borehole drilling specialists Aquasource Ltd in St Stephen created a special rig for it and a six-metre-wide manifold has been created for the pipes – the largest the manufacturer had ever made.

One of three community rooms supporting physical and mental health (Image: Helston Packet) Now the work has moved to finishing off the interior structures, with 19 consulting rooms created along with a reception area and waiting room, plus three community rooms with large windows that will be used for activities such as pilates and baby classes.

Inside plasterboard is going up and soon painting will begin. Meanwhile, outside, the paving surrounding the building is to be taken up and tarmac put down.

Work is due to be completed at end of March – and is currently on track to be handed over on time and on budget.

“There’s no way we could have done this without the team we’ve got,” Jonathan concluded. “As a community project we shouldn’t be giving out a major contract with all the workforce coming from up country – and as it turns out, we got the best possible project because of that.”

• Next week: The latest on the lower ground floor community build and timescale for the project.