NHS England announces new ‘vanguard’ sites to improve health care – The Health Foundation responds

NHS England has today (10 March 2015) announced the first 29 ‘vanguard’ sites that will take the lead nationally in transforming care for patients across the country. The initiative has the potential to reach five million patients, who will benefit from an improved experience of health services.

Today’s announcement includes the commitment of a £200m fund to allow the vanguards to develop local health and care services bringing together home care, mental health, community nursing, GP services and hospitals together for the first time since 1948.

Richard Taunt, Director of Policy at the Health Foundation, comments: 'We welcome any initiative which seeks to improve health care at an accelerated pace.

'Change is urgently needed across all parts of the NHS. Success for the vanguards will not just be whether they can improve patient care in their area, but how they can lead change which can then be adapted and replicated across the country.

'This is only partly about how new models of care can be developed; it is also how successful change can best be supported in a period of intense pressure for the NHS.

'As we highlighted in our recent report – Constructive Comfort – to encourage such change, national bodies need a radical shift in their approach to include redefining the measures for local success. This is the only way to make successful change in the NHS more likely.'

Media contact

Mike Findlay, Senior Media Manager
T: 020 7257 8047
E: mike.findlay@health.org.uk