Leading investors launch new Neighbourhood Health Forum

  • Ten private sector organisations join forces to be “active partners to Government and the NHS to help deliver the future of Neighbourhood Health”
  • Launch report sets out case studies and ‘lessons learned’ from members’ delivery of £7bn of health infrastructure across 1,000 facilities

A new ‘Neighbourhood Health Forum’ has been launched today by ten experienced private sector organisations, including Sewell Group, to offer a collective voice for neighbourhood health delivery – the new forum is aimed at being an active partner to Government and the NHS in the creation of new public-private-partnership (PPP) models and the delivery of a neighbourhood health service.

The Neighbourhood Health Forum brings together ten private sector organisations (Assura, Equitix, Equity Solutions, Eric Wright Partnerships, Fulcrum Infrastructure Group, gbpartnerships, Infracare, Prime plc, Robertson Group, and Sewell Group) with an unrivalled track record in neighbourhood health delivery – the forum represents £7bn of health infrastructure across over 1,000 community facilities and health buildings, delivered under a range of PPP models.

The Neighbourhood Health Forum has today published its launch report that sets out members’ unique experience of the many different elements needed in the successful delivery of neighbourhood health – through a mixture of case studies, ‘lessons learned’ and priority themes, the report outlines how the forum can support the delivery of a neighbourhood health service and the development of new public-private-partnership models, including:

  1. What partnership models work – Having delivered social infrastructure in the UK and globally under a variety of partnership models – including the NHS LIFT Programme, Mutual Investment Model (MIM) and Third-Party Development (3PD) – the forum’s report sets out where best the private sector can support the NHS, and some of the key elements to a strong, successful public-private-partnership in future health delivery.
  2. What neighbourhoods need – Through the delivery of 1,000 community health facilities, the Neighbourhood Health Forum offers an embedded understanding of the challenges faced by some of the most deprived neighbourhoods – a key factor as the Government looks to “begin with places where healthy life expectancy is lowest” in its neighbourhood health plans. The launch report sets out some case studies and key elements to understanding local need and building strategic local relationships.
  1. How best to support the NHS – Having designed and delivered hundreds of neighbourhood buildings already, the forum’s members know what services and facilities will help to embed them in the local community and drive best use by NHS providers. The launch report sets out some of the key elements to a successful, clinically-led approach for neighbourhood health.

Chair of the Neighbourhood Health Forum, Sarah Beaumont-Smith said: “The Government’s 10-Year Health Plan not only sets out an ambitious vision for the next decade of the NHS, but it is also clear on the crucial role the private sector can play. This was the driving force in establishing the Neighbourhood Health Forum, and bringing together a range of investors with a shared view on how the private sector can support this new chapter for the NHS. We want to be active partners to Government and the NHS, and our launch report crystalises the core areas in which we stand ready to help in delivering the shift towards neighbourhood care”.

Former Health Secretary Alan Johnson (the independent chair of Citycare, part of Sewell Group) commented: “We are faced with an NHS in desperate need of rejuvenation, but where strained public finances present a barrier to delivering lasting change. All of this points to the vital role that the private sector will need to play, so The Neighbourhood Health Forum is aimed at creating a collective and experienced private sector voice, and an important new body that will bring clarity and consensus in helping to get things moving at speed.”

Further details on The Neighbourhood Health Forum, and copies of today’s launch report, are available at www.neighbourhoodhealthforum.com.