Up to £80,000 was spent to get the Westridge Covid vaccination centre up and running — which included works to the empty Waltzing Waters attraction.
The Isle of Wight Council awarded the £80,000 contract to Mountjoy, the council’s building maintenance contractor, as urgent works were required to get the building fit for purpose, within the tight timescales.
The majority of the costs however have been covered by the NHS Hampshire, Southampton and Isle of Wight Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG).
Once the vaccination rollout was agreed, the council said a priority was to find suitable locations, which would ensure residents had quick access to the vaccine without having to travel far.
A council spokesperson said: “Thanks to the excellent collaboration between the council, CCG and GP practices, Westridge was identified to ensure we have the facility in place.”
The building, formerly the Waltzing Waters, had stood empty since 2017 after the authority did not renew the attraction’s lease.
Due to the condition of the building, not all of the costs were covered by the CCG, with the council paying for some to make the building suitable in the first place.
The building had to be completed renovated to accommodate the vaccination hub’s needs, with the removal of existing internal fixtures and fittings; re-configuration work; a hygienic wall installed; floor and ceiling finishes; work on lights, electrical and heating; additional fire alarms and emergency lighting; general premises renovations; minor repairs and the provision of equipment including privacy screens.
The council say the CCG is paying the operating costs of the facility and a contribution towards the costs of running the facility.
In a tight timeframe turnaround, vaccines were given from the building next door first, then from the former Waltzing Waters from the start of February.
The first Covid vaccinations on the Island were handed out from December, with 98-year-old Kenneth Killeen, from Newport, receiving the first dose.
Since then 199,394 Covid vaccinations have been given to Islanders.
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