NHS Confederation has drilled into the role of the estate in enabling service transformation in a new report. In partnership with Community Health Partnerships (CHP), the report specifically examines the government’s commitment to delivering care closer to communities through establishing neighbourhood health centres (NHCs).
‘Accelerating estate solutions for neighbourhood health centre delivery’ argues for a fundamental reset in the approach to estate provision; that it should no longer be treated as an afterthought, following commissioning decisions, and local leaders should be enabled to make strategic estate decisions alongside service redesign.
Drawing on insights from a national round table, engagement across NHS Confederation members and case studies, the report highlights key issues, such as tackling void space, creating a culture of collaboration, exploring different funding models and true partnership working, and how the Department of Health and Social Care should support local delivery. It includes successful approaches to estate optimisation, collaborative commissioning and cultural integration.
‘Delivering the government’s neighbourhood health commitments will require bold decisions, innovative solutions and prioritisation of investment at a time when the NHS faces unprecedented financial challenges and pressure to increase productivity. Whilst some interventions will depend on national policy changes, local leaders can also drive improvements.’ The report shares examples of innovation and highlights scalable solutions to accelerate the delivery of NHCs.
