Below are the latest key messages from the national NHS Estates & Facilities Team. Please email any questions or comments you have on any of these items to: [email protected] or follow the links where provided.
Local elections – Purdah
The pre-election period (Purdah) will take effect from April 14, 2022 and will result in restrictions in communications activity across NHS England and NHS Improvement in common with other Government Departments and ALBs.
During this time specific restrictions are placed on the use of public resources and the communication activities of public bodies, civil servants and local government officials. The Purdah period may mean that planned announcements including publications are brought forward or delayed to accommodate this pre-election period.
Living with Covid: staff testing update
Following Government announcements on living with Covid, NHS England has written to NHS leaders to set out our approach to delivering the UK Health Security Agency’s (UKHSA) advice in relation to staff and patient testing. It confirms that from April 1, asymptomatic patient-facing staff should continue to test twice weekly using Lateral Flow Devices (LFDs). Symptomatic NHS staff should test themselves using LFDs. LFD tests will continue to be available through the gov.uk portal for NHS staff in England. Read the full letter here.
Changes to free hospital car parking
The Department of Health and Social Care has confirmed that from April 1, 2022 car parking provided for free during the pandemic will come to an end. Under the updated guidance, NHS staff working overnight will still be able to access free hospital car parking as part of the Government’s commitment to providing this for in-need groups. Read the written ministerial statement and the latest car parking guidance for NHS Trusts.
NHS Chef 2022 open for entries
We are now inviting applications from chefs working in the NHS (whether employed directly by the NHS or a third party) to enter NHS Chef 2022. This exciting competition returns for a second year. The 2021 competition was won by representatives from East Lancashire Hospitals Trust, following a series of regional heats and mentoring from some top chefs. Please see the NHS Estates Collaboration Hub for details of the entry process, application forms and the terms and conditions. Applications need to be sent to: [email protected] by Friday May 31, 2022.
ProCure23 is now live – suppliers awarded to new construction framework for NHS capital works
Suppliers have been awarded to Crown Commercial Service’s Construction Works and Associated Services 2 / ProCure23 framework, in partnership with NHS England and NHS Improvement. There are 12 national suppliers and 21 regional suppliers available via ProCure23 (P23) and it is the primary route for NHS Trusts and ICSs to undertake NHS capital works procurement.
By using the ProCure23 (P23) route to market, NHS organisations will ensure that works adopt the principles of the government’s Construction Playbook, modern construction delivery and a focus on sustainability and social value. For more information on the benefits of this new route to market, please visit our website. The P22 Framework remains live until June 30, 2022.
Listeria update
The UKHSA has updated its advice on high risk foods for certain patients, where there is a specific concern about Listeria monocytogenes. NHS.UK has updated the information for pregnant and vulnerable individuals to reflect the risk of listeriosis from smoked fish by amending the ‘foods to avoid in pregnancy’ webpage, as well as the webpage on ‘listeriosis’, which also includes details on specific actions people can take when handling, storing and preparing foods to reduce their risk of listeriosis.
Compressed medical oxygen manifold upgrade
As part of a drive towards increased resilience and capacity, BOC Healthcare has introduced a new high-pressure cylinder for use on medical oxygen manifold systems, which can hold 66% more oxygen. Directors of Estates and Facilities are encouraged to discuss their requirements with their MGPS contractor and BOC account manager. Please see the following link to the NHS Estates Collaboration Hub for more information: public health section in Hard FM.
Estates Returns Information Collection (ERIC)
The 2021/22 ERIC is due to open in the very near future. However, in advance of this, colleagues at NHS Digital have been in contact with all E&F teams. This relates to the new ‘new sites’ which will be reported on in the next collection and requires completion of a template provided by NHS Digital. This is to enable an update to the EFM portal for the organisations concerned. If your E&F team has not yet completed the template then please arrange to do so as soon as possible. A further reminder on this issue was sent by Tom McHugh to all Directors of Estates and Facilities as well as the ERIC Leads. Please see the NHS Estates Collaboration Hub for further information.
Please contact: [email protected] in the event of any queries regarding this request.
National Standards of Healthcare Cleanliness
The new National Standards of Healthcare Cleanliness were published in April 2021.
The deadline for compliance is May 4, 2022 for acute and mental health Trusts. Primary care and care homes are expected to achieve compliance by November 4, 2022. Please look out for further bespoke guidance and tools which will follow.
Hospital helicopter landing strips: national webinar
The recording and slides following the webinar about hospital helicopter landing strips (HHLS) on March 22 are now available from the NHS Estates Collaboration Hub (Hard FM/Maintenance area). For NHS staff, if you are not already registered then e-mail: [email protected] to request access. Further webinars in relation to the wider issues around the development of HHLSs are expected to take place in the near future. Please look out for the dates when they are confirmed.
Modern Energy Partners
Modern Energy Partners (MEP) was a £12.6 million innovation programme, in collaboration between the Cabinet Office and Catapult Energy Systems. This ran from 2018 to September 2021, exploring ways of decarbonising infrastructure across 42 public sector sites, including prisons, hospitals and defence establishments.
The programme developed novel methods that can enable large public campus sites to achieve at least a 50% non-traded carbon emissions reduction by 2032 against a 2017 baseline. This is by using a learning-by-doing approach to develop a systematic and repeatable process for the decarbonisation. The national E&F Sustainability Team will be scheduling a joint webinar with MEP in the very near future. This will outline the NHS Net Zero Strategy and developments as well as exploring what MEP has delivered alongside some of the useful outputs which are now publicly available and which can be utilised by estates and facilities teams.
If you are interested in attending then please e-mail: [email protected]
Public Switched Telephone Network – service closure
The traditional landline telephone network in the UK, the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), is coming to the end of its life and is gradually being replaced. BT has announced its intention to retire this network by December 2025, with other providers expected to follow a similar timescale. Further information on this is available from the NHS Estates Collaboration Hub.
Case studies
We are currently reviewing all areas of the NHS Estates Collaboration Hub, both the format in some areas as well as the general content. This includes the case studies area. As part of this process we would welcome some additional content. If you have
successfully delivered an estates and facilities related project that could offer fellow E&F teams further insight into best practice and shared learning then we would like to hear from you. If you are interested then please see the Hub for further details and the required template. Alternatively, contact: [email protected], marking for the attention of Joy Heaps and Tom McHugh.
Mailboxes – new e-mail addresses
The e-mail addresses for both the National Estates and Facilities Team and the NHS Estates Collaboration Hub have been updated as follows:
National Webinars
Please note the following dates in your diaries:
• April 28 - Apprenticeship Challenge
• May 26 - NHS Estates Strategies (rescheduled)
• June 30 - NHS Estates and Facilities Resilience (rescheduled)
• July 28 - Fire Safety
• September 29 - Digital Estate.
The joining links will be sent to all listed E&F contacts. NHS staff who would like to attend these sessions can also contact: [email protected] to request an invitation. All of the sessions outlined above will take place from 11am until 12:30pm.
NHS Estates and Facilities Team – Monthly Bulletin
The most recent edition of the monthly Estates and Facilities bulletin was issued on April 1. This provides updates directly from NHS England and NHS Improvement’s Estates and Facilities Team including the latest guidance, Health Technical Memoranda and policy developments affecting your work, as well as celebrating the successes of the wider E&F community. NHS staff can register to receive future editions of the newsletter.
NHS England and NHS Improvement National Estates Team: Collaboration Hub
The Collaboration Hub is a protected space for local NHS estates and facilities teams to access key information as well as to collaborate and to share ideas and successes. Access to the Collaboration Hub for individuals from local NHS estates teams can be arranged by e-mailing: [email protected].
We have been arranging masterclasses to help registered members understand and navigate the Hub more effectively. If you are interested in attending one of these sessions then please e-mail the above mailbox.
If your e-mail address has changed over the past year (perhaps to .nhs.net), or you have moved to another NHS Trust then please e-mail us with the details ([email protected]) so that we can update our records.
You can also follow our latest news and updates on the NHS Estates and Facilities LinkedIn page.
