A ground-breaking £200m venture between local health and social care providers is set to dramatically change the provision of health and social care in the borough by acquiring and building new facilities to deliver integrated health and social care.
Health and Care Space Newham (HCSN), a partnership between Newham Council and East London NHS Foundation Trust (ELFT) will develop facilities that offer GP services alongside a range of community health, social care, out of hospital, and a variety of clinical services. It will also build much-needed housing for sector staff. It is a new development model that will change the way health and social care services are delivered in Newham.
HCSN is the first such partnership between a local authority and an NHS body in the country and is the delivery vehicle for a wider strategic partnership that includes NHS Newham CCG and Newham Health Collaborative (NHC), alongside ELFT and Newham Council. NHC, the local GP federation, are expected to join the partnership in 2019/20.
The signing of the shareholder agreement between Newham Council and ELFT took place at Unex Tower, in Stratford, on 28 February, with the Mayor of Newham, Rokhsana Fiaz, signing the agreement with Dr Mohit Venkataram, Executive Director of Commercial Development at ELFT, and Grainne Siggins, Director of HCSN. Also present were representatives from key partners, Dr Saidur Rahman, Chair of NHC, Selina Douglas, Managing Director of Newham CCG, and Councillor Susan Masters, lead member for Health and Adult Social Care.
As part of its commitments to HCSN, and as part of the Mayor’s commitments to transparency and democratic accountability, Newham Council Cabinet signed off on a comprehensive governance structure for the project at its Cabinet meeting on 5 March.
Mayor Fiaz said: “Health and Care Space Newham will play an important role in the Council’s promise to put people at the heart of everything we do. We are working with health partners to develop new facilities in our communities, bringing services closer to residents and supporting future regeneration of the area.
“Not only will HCSN provide integrated healthcare facilities for growing population in the borough, but it will offer a wide range of social services under one roof. It will be pivotal to creating communities that work for our families.”
Councillor Masters said: “This newly established body will provide a joined up service for the people of Newham.
“This project is the first of its kind in the UK and will provide a long-term solution for health and social care within the borough, which will support the Mayor’s vision for a greater number of homes within the borough.”
Jonathan MacDonald, Interim Programme Lead of Health and Care Space Newham, said: “The signing of the shareholder agreement today is a major step forward in delivering improved the health estate and housing in Newham.
“The HCSN model is the first of its kind, very innovative and very ambitious. Its real strength is the robustness of the partnership underpinning the vision and with the signing of the shareholder agreement, I am looking forward to putting this vision into reality.”
Dr Mohit Venkataram, Executive Director of Commercial Development at ELFT, said: "This will be a partnership with a difference because we are generating social capital/local ownership for our residents through better housing and facilities. Together we will have the ability to provide healthcare in modern fit-for-purpose premises built and owned by the community. This will ease access to services and lead to better health and a better quality of life for local people."
Selina Douglas, Managing Director of NHS Newham CCG, said: “It’s exciting to be part of this innovative venture, which is coming to fruition after years of commitment and dedication of health and social care providers to improve access to efficient and modern healthcare services. This venture will see Newham become the first place in the country to integrate primary and community care services while creating new affordable rental homes for health and social care staff. We will continue to work in partnership to ensure that the communities we serve have access to the best and most innovative services we can develop.”