A national programme is underway to learn more about GP practice premises, led by NHS England & Improvement. The programme will provide both Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs), Primary Care Networks (PCNs) and ICSs with the tools to support local planning and decision making, and present the data considered key to evidencing and identifying areas of need, opportunities for investment, and demonstrating cases for change.

NHSE/I will work with Community Health Partnerships (CHP) to manage the programme, with central resource provided to minimise impact on day-to-day GP business. While the majority of the programme will be undertaken at desktop level, where premises access is required, governmental COVID-19 guidance will be adhered to in planning and conducting visits. 

As the owner and manager of 10% of the NHS estate, NHS Property Services fully supports the data initiative and is committed to supporting this programme. We are providing property and occupancy data from our estate (excluding any personal identifiable staff and patient-level data), together with condition and compliance information, to help create a baseline of consistent data for GP practices across England. Data is crucial to better understanding and managing the Primary Care estate, helping the NHS get the most out of the estate to enable excellent patient care.

“This is an important programme for the NHS as we seek to better understand and optimise our estate and make informed investment decisions. Robust data is crucial to proactive estate management and will be key to delivering the vision of the Long-Term Plan. In our role as owner and manager of much of the NHS primary care estate, NHS Property Services is committed to supporting this programme. We will be providing timely and robust data and be on hand to support customers through the process, and help them develop and deliver the requirements.” – Simon Taylor, Portfolio Optimisation Director, NHS Property Services

If you have any queries about the programme or would like to discuss further, please contact the CHP Programme Delivery Team via pcdg@communityhealthpartnerships.co.uk.