FAMILY doctors, police officers and ambulance crews could be set to work from the same building in Monmouth, under innovative plans for a new GP surgery in the town.

The Argus reported last week that Dixton Surgery, on the town's Dixton Road, could move to new premises on the other side of Monmouth by the end of 2013.

The proposals, agreed by Aneurin Bevan Health Board, will now be put to the Welsh Government for approval, and if that is forthcoming, a developer will be sought for the project.

But as well as providing a much-needed new surgery for a GP practice - Dixton Surgery has outgrown its current premises, where it provides services for 3,700 patients - the new surgery could also provide new local bases for the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust and Gwent Police.

The GP practice is likely to see its patient numbers swell to around 5,000 in the coming years, as new housing developments bring in more people.

The ambulance trust's Monmouth station, in Rockfield Road, does not meet current standards, and co-locating with the new surgery could provide a solution.

Similarly, Gwent Police, says a health board report, is "looking to relocate from the centre of the town with a smaller, rapid response unit."

Nothing is yet signed, sealed or delivered, but if co-location does go ahead, the surgery building could become a hub for emergency services for the Monmouth area, and the proposed site - next door to the Monnow Vale health and social care facility, would be especially beneficial from a health services point of view.