Building work is due to start on a new resource centre for people with life-limiting illnesses after planning permission was secured for the £710,000 project.

Halesworth Community Nursing Care Fund (HCNCF) was given permission to build the Information and Support Centre (ISC) on land next to Cutlers Hill Surgery in Halesworth, by Waveney District Council last week.

It comes after the charity hit its fundraising target following a £55,605 pledge from the Patrick Stead Hospital League of Friends last month.

It is hoped that building work will begin early in 2017 and be complete by the end of the year, with the centre opening in early 2018.

Ted Edwards, ISC chairman, said: “We are absolutely delighted that we have secured planning permission. It marks the start of the next phase of this exciting project, and is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our trustees and fundraisers.

“We are really looking forward to starting work on construction, and watching the building take shape over the coming months. It fantastic that we are now one step closer to providing this valuable facility for people living in the rural areas surrounding Halesworth.”

Once complete, the building will include space for local support groups to meet, a counselling room, small library and a comfortable area where people can relax and chat informally. A therapy room, where patients can receive complementary treatments such as Reiki and massage, will also be included.

Anyone from north east Suffolk or south Norfolk with cancer or other life-limiting illnesses, as well as their families and carers, will be welcome to use the centre. As well as help understanding a diagnosis, it will also offer family services, information and practical advice on finance, benefits and coping with bereavement.

For more information about the project, or to make a donation to help with the centre’s running costs, visit www.halesworthhealth.org/information-and-support-centre