Horse hospital agreed (From York Press)

Askham Bryan College horse hospital agreed

8:08am Friday 19th August 2011 in News By Megi Rychlikova, megi.rychlikova@thepress.co.uk

YORK is to get its own purpose-built horse hospital after a vets’ group and Askham Bryan College won councillors’ backing for a joint scheme.

Minster Veterinary Practice and the college will use the hospital to train about 200 students in equine management and animal nursing as well as for treating sick and injured horses.

Construction work is expected to begin as soon as possible on the northern part of Askham Bryan College’s site, previously used for tractor training.

The west and city centre area planning sub-committee unanimously approved the scheme without a debate.

The approval comes four years after Minster Veterinary Practice gained planning permission for a similar scheme, but was unable to go ahead with construction because of cost.

Liz Philips, the college’s principal, who attended the meeting, said: “I would expect to find groups of students – I’m talking of between two and eight – to access the facilities for at least four hours a day, every day.”

In addition to giving students practical hands-on experience, the horse hospital will be a fully working veterinary site, healing and caring for sick animals.

It will employ 23 people, who will transfer to it from the vets’ other sites in Salisbury Terrace, near Water End, Haxby, Earswick and Copmanthorpe, and its current specialist equine centre at Poppleton, which is now expected to close. The other surgeries will remain open.

The new hospital will include seven buildings with staff accommodation, as it will need to be manned 24 hours a day. Horse boxes bringing patients will arrive using York Road, to the north of the college site.

Rural West councillor Ian Gillies said there would be no need for traffic to the hospital to go through Askham Bryan village, and road warning signs would be erected at the entrance.

The vets and college will also have to take precautions to protect wildlife on the site.