NHS development support offer to social landlords

Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England, yesterday announced a new initiative with Public Health England to ‘put health at the heart of new neighbourhoods’.

Under the scheme, called Healthy New Towns, NHS England is inviting councils, housing associations and construction firms to put forward development projects for which they would like NHS support.

The NHS will then select five long-term partnerships covering developments of different sizes, from those of 250 homes to more than 10,000. The NHS will develop a package of support which could include:

• Convening expertise, including from policymakers, designers, economists and innovators
• Providing specialist input about design of local heath and care services
• Working with experts in public health to maximise opportunities for health promotion and disease prevention
• Helping to bring ‘enterprise and innovators to the table’
• Supporting the design of technology-enabled smart developments
• Identifying models for evaluating health impacts

Mr Stevens, speaking at the Local Government Association’s annual conference in Harrogate yesterday, said: ‘This country needs a big expansion in affordable new housebuilding, but as we do so, let’s future-proof our new communities for the health and care challenges of this new century – obesity, dementia, new models of digital health.’

The NHS is asking for expressions of interest which should identify a ‘lead partner’ for each proposal. Lead partners can be councils, housing associations, private developers or NHS trusts. Those applying should outline the size, type, location and stage of their developments. The NHS is looking for ‘ambitious ideas about how to collaborate with the NHS’.

The deadline for expressions of interest is 30 September.