Prime Highlights:

• Buckinghamshire has been selected as one of 43 areas nationwide to take part in the National Neighbourhood Health Implementation Programme (NNHIP).
• The programme aims to bring integrated, community-focused health services closer to residents in High Wycombe, North Buckinghamshire, Beaconsfield, and Marlow.

Key Facts:

• Neighbourhood teams will include professionals from NHS trusts, primary care, local councils, voluntary organisations, as well as pharmacy, optometry, and dentistry services.
• The initiative will build on existing local work, providing coaching, collaborative learning, and support to improve health services and preventive care.

Background:

Buckinghamshire has been selected to take part in a national health initiative aimed at transforming how care is delivered across communities. The National Neighbourhood Health Implementation Programme (NNHIP) seeks to provide high-quality, integrated health services closer to home over the next decade.

Out of 141 submissions nationwide, Buckinghamshire was one of only 43 areas to be chosen. The programme will focus on developing integrated neighbourhood health services in High Wycombe, North Buckinghamshire, Beaconsfield, and Marlow.

Neighbourhood teams will bring together professionals from Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, primary care services led by the Bucks GP Provider Alliance, Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, Buckinghamshire Council, and local voluntary, community, and social enterprise organisations. The teams will also include pharmacy, optometry, and dentistry services.

The initiative will build on existing local work and experiences, providing collaborative learning, coaching, and implementation support to help communities benefit from more joined-up care.

Raghuv Bhasin, Chief Operating Officer at Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, said: “Neighbourhood Care is central to our vision of helping people in Buckinghamshire live healthier, more independent lives. This programme allows us to work with partners to shape services around the needs of local communities. We’re already making changes, such as offering proactive frailty appointments as a MOT for older residents, and this programme will help us go further, faster.”

Nick Broughton, Chief Executive of the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire West Integrated Care Board (BOB ICB), added: “We’re excited to be part of the first group taking forward this programme. By focusing on prevention and using digital tools like the NHS App, we can help people stay well for longer. “This approach puts health and care at the centre of communities in Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Berkshire West.”

Dr George Gavriel of the Bucks GP Provider Alliance said: “General practice plays an important role in neighbourhood care, bringing together health, care, and community teams. This programme is a great chance to strengthen local partnerships and provide care that meets the needs of people in our area.”

The National Neighbourhood Health Implementation Programme is an important step in making NHS services more community-focused and accessible to those who need them most.