The NHS Confederation and Community Health Partnerships (CHP), a DHSC-owned company, have announced a new programme to help accelerate the development of neighbourhood health centres across England through better use of community infrastructure.
Community Health Partnerships aims to transform health and care services by improving the community-based estate through LIFT (Local Improvement Finance Trust) public-private partnerships.
The partnership will support system leaders to utilise and repurpose their existing estates for neighbourhood health.
The programme will also address the commissioning and contracting barriers that often prevent co-location and shared use of space, and develop practical recommendations for strategic commissioners, NHS trusts, primary care, local government, and the voluntary sector.
NHS Confederation chief executive Matthew Taylor said, “There is a real challenge around primary and community estates in this country that we must solve if the government’s ambitions to co-locate both NHS and other local services in Neighbourhood Health Centres is to become a reality."
Community Health Partnerships chief executive Wendy Farrington-Chadd said, “The concept of neighbourhood health centres speaks to the purpose of LIFT and we are enabling the transformation of healthcare services through better use of existing assets. This will drive productivity and value for the NHS.
“Our partnership with the NHS Confederation will enable us to share key insight and real examples from our work to support the delivery of neighbourhood care at pace.”
