CMM 14.9 Dec Jan 2017 LR

HEALTH VILLAGE ON THE HORIZON:
A STEP FORWARD FOR INTEGRATION?
Steps are being taken to develop a dedicated health village in Burton. Billed as a ‘landmark
development’ is this innovative approach to health, social care and community on one site a step
forward for integration?
STRIDE, the strategic estates
partnership between Morgan
Sindall Investments’ health brand
Community Solutions, Arcadis and
Burton Hospitals NHS Foundation
Trust, has announced that
plans for a £55m health village
development in Burton have been
approved by the Board.
The Burton Hospitals NHS
Foundation Trust has signed an
option with STRIDE to progress the
landmark development on surplus
land, called Outwoods, adjacent to
its Queen’s Hospital site in Burton.
Although the exact timescales
are not set in stone, STRIDE will
progress the scheme towards
outline planning before the end
of 2017.
However, if outline planning
is successfully granted in the
first quarter of 2018, the team
hopes to start construction in
the second quarter of 2019.
In the meantime, they will be
undertaking a programme of
public consultations.
HEALTH VILLAGE PLANS
The development, which
is scheduled to provide GP
and community services for
about 30,000 patients, also
currently includes plans for an
extra care development and a
step-down facility to mitigate
delayed discharges, as well as
accommodation for vulnerable
adults and a 100+ place nursery
to support the growth of
intergenerational care in the area.
The health village will also
benefit from the inclusion of a
community hub, which STRIDE
hopes will support greater
integration between the different
groups supported on the site and
the local community.
Peter Cox, Director of STRIDE
said, ‘We have outlined what
is expected in the main on this
site. We have yet to confirm
what health services will wrap
around the GP practices as this
is part of the next phase of our
development process. The Queen’s
Hospital site provides a full acute
hospital service and the Outwoods
development will complement this.
‘We are currently looking at
innovative ways of funding this
development and this will be
based on the individual types of
development planned as part of
the overall scheme. Community
Solutions will be responsible for
the overall development, which
will include putting together the
funding packages.’
DRIVERS FOR THE
DEVELOPMENT
Given that policy is encouraging
integration and there is a distinct
need for services to reduce
delayed transfers of care, Peter
explained what they are hoping
to achieve with the health village,
‘There are two major drivers
that this development meets. By
having complementary frontline
services, particularly the primary
and community care provision,
it supports keeping people out
of hospital and, in particular,
delivering primary care at scale can
ensure patients don’t use A&E.
‘In addition, by providing
supported living, either
through the extra care or the
accommodation for adults with
learning disabilities, these modern,
supportive environments will have
an additional impact on this.
‘Developing step-down facilities
also ensures that patients can be
released in to a more appropriate
environment freeing up beds in the
hospital.’
POLICY DIRECTION
The development comes from a
number of policy drivers locally
and nationally. Burton Hospitals
NHS Foundation Trust’s Strategic
Plan for 2014 to 2019 says that
the Trust intends to ‘evolve
with the changing landscape of
healthcare and take a lead on
delivering innovative approaches
to delivering care.’
Added to this, NHS Property
and Estates: Why the estate
matters for patients, an
independent report by Sir Robert
Naylor for the Secretary of State
for Health, published in March
2017, set out to develop a new
NHS estate strategy, one that
is fit-for-purpose and presents
the opportunity to rebuild NHS
infrastructure to meet modern
standards of service delivery for
the future.
The review also says that,
‘The NHS estate is one of the key
enablers to change in the health
system and directly contributes
to the delivery of high quality
healthcare to patients. It is also
a significant source of untapped
value.’ It could be used to release
capital to fund NHS transformation,
the Five Year Forward View and
Sustainability and Transformation
Partnership plans.
Chief Executive of Burton
Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust,
Helen Scott-South explained
more, ‘We have long-recognised
the need to ensure services in the
community, including GP services,
are better integrated into the
services we provide at Queen’s.
‘The development proposed,
in lieu of a standard housing
development, enables a greater
focus for the community in
providing more seamless care.
‘We are also conscious, as
outlined in the Naylor report
published earlier in the year,
that the NHS has to make better
use of its surplus land and we
are delighted that our partners
in STRIDE have put forward this
exciting development.’
STRIDE is supporting the
Trust in its strategic plan for the
future and is striving to deliver
real efficiencies and innovation
across all aspects of the Trust’s
operations, as part of its journey
to deliver an outstanding patient
experience, every step of the
way. The health village is part
of the joint venture’s plans to
deliver efficiency savings and
infrastructure projects over 10
years.
Peter Cox finished, ‘We are
very excited to be working
with the Trust to realise the
enhanced health outcomes
which will be delivered through
this development, by drawing on
our wider property development
skillset as well as our experience
in the health sector developing
health facilities.’
CMM
OVER TO THE EXPERTS...
What are your thoughts on
this proposed health village to
integrate health, social care
and community in Burton? Is
this an ideal solution to bring
together services and the wider
community? Is it a solution for
surplus NHS land that could be
replicated elsewhere? Is there a
risk that it’ll lead to segregation
of people living on the site?
What does the panel think?
30 CMM December 2017