JUST one doctor's practice has said it will go into a new Accrington health centre.

Doctors have refused to sign up to a project, to mirror the £10million Darwen Health Centre, because they are worried about getting a good price for their existing practices.

NHS bosses want to bring together practices in the Blackburn Road area.

There is planning permission for the centre to be built on land bounded by Blackburn Road, Lonsdale Street, Lower Antley Street and Leyland Street.

Hyndburn and Ribble Valley NHS Primary Care Trust said this is essential to replace outdated practices.

But only one practice out of a potential six has said it will sign up and at least one is known to be strongly disputing the proposal.

Mark Wilkinson, chief executive of the PCT, pictured, right, said: "No GP has fully signed up.

"Others need to agree terms to sell their surgeries."

He said construction will begin with or without the other surgeries' support and other uses will be found for the space if they snub the development. He added: "Our main concern is to make sure the space is used appropriately to deliver high quality services. If we don't get each of them to move in there will be lots of other uses for the space, such as outpatient clinics.

"Our first choice is to get the GP practices to move in but even if not all of them move in I don't think it will be the end of the world."

Mr Wilkinson has spoken to each of the practices to "fully understand" why they are not backing the scheme. Director of finance Jeannette Newman said the key problem was a "substantial variation" between two ways of pricing the existing GP properties.

The PCT would buy any surgeries that move but has said it will only pay a property's value on the open market, which would be less than if it was sold on the condition it remained a surgery.

A surgery valued at £732,500 would get £540,000 from the PCT.

But Mr Wilkinson said the PCT was prepared to plough on with the new centre, which would be built with private cash then paid back by the NHS.

Another scheme, to accommodate practices in East Accrington, is planned for Paradise Street.

He said: "Of the other buildings that have been built under this initiative in Darwen, Nelson and Bacup it is fair to say GPs had not signed up when construction started but when it opened agreements were reached."