The Secretary of State for Health (Mr Andrew Lansley)
I am announcing today our intention to create a Government-owned limited company, “NHS Property Services Ltd”. The company will take ownership of and manage that part of the existing primary care trust estate that will not transfer to national health service community care providers under the plans for healthcare reform set out in the Health and Social Care Bill.
This follows on from the announcement on 4 August 2011 that aspirant community foundation trusts, other NHS trusts, and foundation trusts are to be given the opportunity to acquire part(s) of the primary care trust (PCT) estate deemed “service critical clinical infrastructure”. A copy of the relevant guidance, “PCT Estate: future ownership and management of estate in the ownership of primary care trusts in England”, has previously been placed in the Library.
NHS Property Services Ltd will be wholly owned by the Department of Health. The arrangements for it will be finalised in the coming months, however its objectives will be to:
hold property for use by community and primary care services, including for use by social enterprises;
deliver value for money property services;
cut costs of administering the estate by consolidating the management of over 150 estates;
deliver and develop cost-effective property solutions for community health services; and
dispose of property surplus to NHS requirements.
Properties to be transferred to NHS Property Services Ltd will include some operational estate, estate with multiple occupiers, office and administration estate, estate to be occupied by social enterprises and surplus estate.
Estate that is clearly linked to the provision of clinical services and mainly occupied by NHS providers for that purpose will be transferred to them.
Existing contractual arrangements with service providers that deliver and maintain NHS properties will remain in place to support the needs of this property portfolio.