The Department of Health and Partnerships UK (PUK) today announced that the Department is set to become the sole owner of Partnerships for Health (PfH), the public private partnership set up to encourage investment in GP premises and health centres. 

The decision follows the successful completion of the third wave of the Government’s £1 billion NHS Local Improvement Finance Trust (LIFT) programme to improve primary and community healthcare facilities and is in line with PUK’s mission to pioneer new models and initiatives with public and private sector bodies.

Under the deal, the Department will assume sole responsibility for PfH’s 20  per cent stake in each of the 42 NHS LIFT companies. The seven schemes in the fourth wave of NHS LIFT will continue as planned, with the department providing all investment and support to PfH.

Health Minister Lord Warner said:

“Partnerships UK’s role was always to establish a new market for the development of a new wave of GP premises and health centres.  The fact that dozens of modern, purpose built centres have opened their doors to patients in the last few years is a real testimony to the success they have helped us achieve.

“Today’s agreement will help us take this revolution in NHS facilities even further, as we look to deliver on our white paper commitment to develop a new generation of modern NHS community hospitals.”

James Stewart, Chief Executive of Partnerships UK said:

“Partnerships UK helped create a unique market opportunity for the health sector. With the primary health schemes delivered and the market having reached a high level of sophistication and maturity, it is now time for us to recycle our skills and resources in other sectors.

"This has been a highly successful programme which will leave a lasting impression on the health sector and the patients that use its facilities right across the country.”

The NHS LIFT programme has so far delivered many new buildings open to patients, with another building opening every week for the rest of the year, which is faster than new Tesco stores. Many of these new buildings are one-stop primary care centres bringing new and enhanced services into the heart of deprived communities that have suffered from historic inequalities in services, such as East London, Barnsley and Wigan. 

The modern, spacious and hygienic buildings are helping bring in more GPs into those inner-city areas where, formerly, conditions were unlikely to attract GPs and other health professionals.

It is anticipated that the sale will be completed by December 2006.

PfH, a national joint venture between the Department of Health and PUK, was set up to manage and help deliver the NHS LIFT programme.  PfH has completed waves 1-3 of the programme, delivering 42 local NHS LIFT companies.  PfH will continue in business as usual and will still provide full support and investment to all existing and 4th wave LIFT procurements.

A key challenge of the program was to develop a new market of potential suppliers to meet the NHS LIFT investment requirements.  This was successfully achieved, with a minimum of three bidders on each project and nineteen different private sector consortia ending up as private sector partners.

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. The LIFT programme was set up in 2000 and has led to the setting up of 42 LIFT companies in the first three waves. A third of these are in health action zones and cover the most deprived areas of the country.
   
2. The NHS Plan outlined NHS LIFT as a vehicle to invest money into primary care premises throughout the country to help reduce waiting times for GPs. NHS LIFT is also providing integrated primary care premises  which can provide a range of primary care services from one site.
   
3. The Department of Health entered a national joint venture with Partnerships UK (PUK) to develop and encourage a new market for investment in primary care and community based facilities and services. The joint venture company is Partnerships for Health (PfH).
   
4. PUK, set up by the Treasury as a public private partnership in 2000, has developed a number of new procurement initiatives. Its mission is to support the public sector by providing specialist skills and expertise in the procurement of projects leading to the delivery of modern, high quality public services. PUK and the Department of Health’s setting up of PfH and the development with a central delivery model – PfH and the LIFT Co.  model -  reflects a 20 per cent funding from PfH, from the Department of Health and PUK (the public sector), 20 per cent funding from the local health economy with the remaining 60 per cent coming from the private sector).
   
5. The NHS LIFT approach involves the local health economy -  a PCT or a cluster of PCTs -  in developing a strategic plan, incorporating its local primary care service needs and relationships with, for example, intermediate care, and local authority services.
   
6. Based on the strategic plan, the NHS runs a competitive process to select a private sector partner for the next 20 years. The NHS, PsH and private sector then set up a joint venture company to manage the NHS lift project. They all own a share of the company and jointly have an interest in its long-term success. The company (LIFT Co.) designs, builds and operates the facilities in accordance with the wishes of the local NHS and other stakeholders. The Lift Co. raises the required capital and is repaid through lease payments from PCTs, GPs and others for the use of the facilities when they are built.
   
7. The NHS LIFT approach provides a number of benefits. It has established a long term sustainable relationship focused on delivering primary care investment and services. It will involve the private sector where they can add most value. Crucially, it will provide investment in modern integrated primary care services.
   
8. For media enquiries only contact Patricia Nicholas at DoH Media Centre on 020 7210 5137 or Malcolm Graves at Partnerships UK on 020 7270 5161.