Independent healthcare
already entered effective, ongoing partnership with the independent healthcare sector to work within the current accounting rules.
2: To create a forum for leadership and enable ongoing partnership between Government, the NHS and the independent healthcare sector, a National Strategic Council for Healthcare Infrastructure should be established. Its membership should include representatives from HM Treasury, DHSC, the NHS and the independent healthcare sector to enhance collaboration on the enablers of public-private partnerships (PPPs). Its work should align to the Government’s stated priorities in the 10-Year Health Plan. In conjunction, DHSC should publish a dedicated set of guidelines for how the NHS will use PPPs, with a focus on an expansion of independent sector led services to tackle waiting times for elective care and diagnostics.
3: The Government should collaborate with the independent healthcare sector to develop a dedicated Neighbourhood Health Capital Fund. To avoid the usual difficulties in the existing capital system and to move at pace, a separate and dedicated Neighbourhood Health Capital Fund should be established. Such a Fund would allow the Government to set out the strategic objectives, requirements and levels of investment needed from capital investment into neighbourhood health. The primary aim of the Fund would be to raise private capital
GenesisCare UK, Guildford
investment, but it could also be supplemented by central funds to support the overall capital requirements of the neighbourhood health programme. The development of the Fund will also create opportunities for independent sector delivery of some clinical services within these new neighbourhood health facilities, which can be delivered within the bounds of the Provider Selection Regime.
Alongside this, the National Health Service
(General Medical Services Premises Costs) Directions 2024 should be amended in tandem, so that they are supportive of private capital
Case Study: South West Region
Permanent facilities have been funded by the private sector, boosting diagnostic capacity for patients in the South West, a previously underserved region of the country. Historically, the South West Region had a shortage of diagnostic capacity, contributing to long waiting times for tests, exacerbated by the effects of the pandemic. The Region also has challenges due to its rural geography and dispersed population, leading to inequitable access to services. Plans to address these challenges were constrained by the limited capital resource available for investment in new capacity, and a shortage of clinical workforce in parts of the Region. The NHS England Regional team coordinated
a collaborative Region-wide procurement for an Independent Sector partner to provide five additional Community Diagnostic Centres (CDCs) and Region-wide mobile diagnostic services. A range of diagnostic modalities were specified, including MRI, CT, Ultrasound and Cardio-
respiratory Physiological Measurement such as Echocardiography, Endoscopy and Phlebotomy. All services were to be digitally integrated with local NHS services. InHealth was selected as the preferred partner and has been contracted to deliver these services, which will treat in excess of two million patients over the life of the contract. InHealth invested £32m of capital in buildings and diagnostic equipment, plus 13 mobile MRI scanners, seven mobile CT scanners and five mobile endoscopy units which provided early mobilisation of the new diagnostic services. Mobile services commenced on 1 April 2023, providing capacity 12 months ahead of the first permanent facilities being completed. The service has been shortlisted for the Best Provider of Diagnostic Services at the HSJ Independent Healthcare Providers Awards. The project has delivered some notable results:
New permanent facilities – The five new CDC sites were confirmed as Weston-Super-Mare, North Bristol, Torbay, Yeovil and Cambourne/Redruth. The new CDCs in Weston and North Bristol opened on
1 April 2024, with North Bristol being provided via an innovative “mobile village” solution adjacent to the permanent CDC building which became operational in September 2024. The site in Torbay also opened in September 2024 with the CDCs in Yeovil and Cambourne/Redruth currently under construction due to open in 2026. Improved Accessibility – All five sites have been chosen to provide the best possible access for the local population in the heart of the communities that they serve, with public transport links and parking. The CDCs are open seven days per week and up to 14 hours per day, offering a wide range of choice to patients for convenient appointment times. All sites cater for patients with additional needs such as reduced mobility, sensory disability and where English is not their first language. Improved Waiting times – Patients referred to the CDCs for their diagnostic tests are seen within the NHS Constitution standard of 6 weeks, or sooner if they have been referred with a suspected cancer or on a clinically urgent basis.
March 2026 I
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investment into the NHS primary care estate and to enable alignment to the Government’s vision.
4: Enhancing accountability for delivering on NHS capital priorities The Government will need to follow through on its 10-Year Health Plan aims of speeding up capital programme processes. As part of this it should introduce a new indicator in the NHS Oversight Framework that tracks the performance of NHS organisations on their delivery of capital projects. Such transparency
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