AN ambitious project could see Kington’s library transformed into a wellbeing centre, where residents can get counselling, blood pressure checks and even video-call their GP.

While the project is still in its early stages, it is hoped that the centre could become a hub for a variety of services in the town, filling in some of the gaps in care that are often found in rural areas.

It would exist alongside the library and customer service facility at The Kington Centre.

And if successful, a preliminary report indicates similar centres could be rolled out across the county.

Kington has the highest proportion of over-65s in Herefordshire, and has a higher than average incidence of heart disease, diabetes and dementia.

The plan is that the Kington Wellbeing Centre would act as a single access point, helping provide people with health information, therapy sessions or advice on how to access benefits.

And it is hoped is that a strong programme will have a knock-on effect, reducing the pressure on frontline services like A&E or the GP centre at Kington Court.

Herefordshire Council has worked with local groups to build up a picture of what the area needs and has looked at case studies for how a wellbeing centre could help individuals.

One area in particular that was identified for improvement was an increased availability of online services.

That could range from helping train people to use the internet so they can use online services themselves, to online consultations or “tele-medicine”.

The wellbeing centre would be ideally placed to provide these links, with IT services already in place at the library.

The space could also be used for counselling and group session, for example ante-natal classes or Macmillan Foundation sessions for cancer patients.