Partnering with an Integrated Care System to develop an enabling NHS estate for regional healthcare transformation

Customer: North West London Integrated Care System

NHSPS representatives: Jake Roe, Regional Partnership Director (London), and Dhiren Ganesh, Senior Portfolio Optimisation Manager

NHS Property Services (NHSPS) has an established relationship with the Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) in North West London where there are more than 70 NHSPS managed and owned sites within the area.

Since 2017 NHSPS and the CCGs have worked together to identify the first four national development projects to deliver transformational change to the NHS estate in addition to other projects.

These relationships have now developed further by working on a strategic level across the North West London Integrated Care System (ICS) area on development and optimisation projects to meet their strategy to help deliver improved primary care estates.

There are varied challenges across the region from high deprivation in outer London, to cost challenges in central London. The estate includes some sites that are larger, complex or high profile with varying levels of effective utilisation and condition challenges.

Estates is seen as a key enabler to resolving these challenges and helping the NHS optimise patient and workforce experience.

NHSPS is a key partner to North West London ICS and works collaboratively to design and deliver the estate required to support transformation of the region’s healthcare.

There is a close and trusted relationship with the ICS team to provide support including:

• Leading on business cases for joint re-development projects in support of providing new and improved healthcare facilities.
• Working together collaboratively on key Estates Transformation and Technology Fund (ETTF) and Sustainability Transformation Partnership funded projects, to secure funding and support the design and delivery of construction for refurbishments.
• Jointly scoping and progressing One Public Estate (OPE) opportunities with CCGs and local authorities to successfully secure funding and complete reviews to seek new opportunities to improve NHS facilities.
• Acting as landlord to take on and drive best value from headleases to ensure continuity of service.
• Identifying and enabling additional bed capacity by reconfiguring space within the NHSPS buildings during the initial wave of COVID19 to support hospital capacity.
• Supporting vaccination programme across the region.

This partnership has enabled the NHS family to come together to deliver successful projects in the region through increased collaboration. The success of the partnership demonstrates how an aligned estate and clinical strategy can enable one another to make a positive impact to an area’s healthcare outcomes.

Key sites that demonstrate this productive partnership include:

Chiswick Health Centre

The site has been identified as a key healthcare hub for the delivery of current and additional out-of-hospital services. NHSPS and the ICS are working together to develop a flexible, fit-for-purpose health hub over four storeys which delivers a brand-new health centre with increased capacity, much needed new homes and enhanced public spaces.

Northwood & Pinner Community Hospital

Releasing the value of the NHS surplus land by enabling a development project to provide a new self-funded health facility on a 100-year-old NHS unused building. The project is self-funded through the release of the surplus land for housing. We are supporting the ICS to work up the whole project including the business case, obtaining planning, design, and construction of the new facility.

St Charles Hospital

Supported the OPE partnership locality healthcare planning review to identify additional opportunities for the ICS and other public partner organisations to work together on projects to transform local communities and public services.

Willesden Centre for Health

Supporting the delivery of recommissioning of space at this site in support of COVID-19 which included providing an additional 38 patient beds during the first wave and a Primary Care Network vaccination location in January 2021. Learn more.

Milson Road

Developing a new modern “super surgery” supporting more than 8,500 patients by refurbishing a site that enables relocation and co-location of two GP practices. NHSPS supported the business case development to secure £1.6m which can be invested into the building to optimise the estate.

Ferguson House

Delivering a headlease renewal of the ICS’ headquarters to right-size the office estate on preferred terms with a new modern refurbishment and creating space for a GP to move into a new modern healthcare estate.

South Westminster

Developing London’s very first NHS Open Space location bringing an easy-to-use digital booking platform to drive usage and broaden access to additional healthcare services in local communities. Learn more about NHS Open Space. 

Central London

Leading on a programme which looks to optimise multiple sites with the region, to generate value from non-optimal estate which can be reinvested into modern fit for purpose strategic estate to improve the patient experience in line with regional healthcare priorities.