Thursday 2 February 2017

Brent voluntary organisations face crisis as NHS Estate's Market Rent policy is implemented

The NHS Estates programme is scheduled to be completed by June 2017, according to their website which will mean 6 or 7 Brent voluntary organisations providing back-up health services will be faced with paying market rents from April 2017.

Many will not be able to afford them and will be faced with finding new bases despite the Sustainability and Transformation Plan being based on collaboration enhanced by location in the same premises.

At a previous Scrutiny Meeting, it was reported that The Willesden Centre for Health and Care (with its PFI legacy) was "presenting a particular challenge" but the Brent CCG also reported "that plans were in place" to sort it out.  The CCG agreed to "detail in its commissioning intentions how it will use the Estates strategy to support and enable the voluntary sector" (Agenda item 5, NHS  Estate in Brent, 23/11/16.)

Brent Advocacy Concerns, one of the voluntary organisations affected, has approached Brent Healthwatch and Brent CVS for assistance, so far without success. 

Assurances had been given when I raised the issue previously that assistance would be given to voluntary organisation to enable them to be part of contracted services. access grants to enable them to be able to pay market rents, improve their financial viability or to share sessional space at centres.  So far none of these options have resulted in concrete proposals.

Brent Advocacy Concern meet tomorrow lunchtime with the shadow of closure hanging over them with little information on which to plan their future.

1 comment:

Retired NHS employee said...

This really an impossible situation for these voluntary organisations to be put in and shows the complete chaos which the NHS is being plunged into.
There has to be some complete rethinking at the highest levels of NHS England and it needs to be done rapidly before everything disintegrates.