Gloucestershire Care Services Social Enterprise Plan Moves Ahead
29/07/2011
Plans for community-based healthcare services in Gloucestershire to become a social enterprise organisation, known as Gloucestershire Care Services Community Interest Company, were yesterday assured by the Board of NHS South West, the Strategic Health Authority for the region.
The proposal, recommended by NHS Gloucestershire, will see the vast majority of community-based health services, currently the responsibility of NHS Gloucestershire, move to the Community Interest Company and work for the benefit of the local community, with representatives and partners having a say in how the company is run, and any surpluses being reinvested into local care.
This further step means the new organisation will be up and running by 1 October 2011.
Chair designate of Gloucestershire Care Services CIC, Ingrid Barker said:
“Being a Community Interest Company means that we really will be working for the good of our community, who will, in turn, work in partnership with us to shape the company and the services it will provide.”
“This is an exciting time for all staff as together we develop this new way of providing NHS services. We will have the flexibility to be able to respond to the health needs of the people of Gloucestershire in new ways.”
Gloucestershire Care Services CIC will provide more than 20 different services in Gloucestershire including running the 9 community hospitals, District Nursing, Children’s Community Nursing, Therapy services and Specialist services supporting people in their own homes.
The services will continue to be NHS-funded, free at the point of use, and the community hospitals will remain part of the NHS Estate.
Jan Stubbings, Chief Executive of NHS Gloucestershire, said:
“Receiving this assurance from NHS South West is a further step in forming this new organisation. The NHS Gloucestershire Board considered the options for the future of community based services very carefully.
“We believe that the Social Enterprise will help health services locally to innovate and give staff and our service users a stronger say on how services are run for the benefit of local communities.”
We believe that it will be the best way to support more joined up health and social care services in the future and it will be an organisation that is focused solely on providing high quality community based services.”
“The full business plan showed that the new social enterprise organisation will provide the highest standards of clinical care, deliver safe services, manage services effectively and live within its means financially.
“I have every confidence that this new organisation will work closely with commissioners, GPs and other healthcare professionals to provide NHS patients with NHS funded services that deliver the NHS values.”
Chief Executive Designate for Gloucestershire Care Services CIC, Penny Harris said:
“We are already working closely with commissioning GPs and NHS Gloucestershire to develop and improve our services to allow people to be treated closer to home and, wherever possible, stay at home during a period of illness.
“As Gloucestershire Care Services CIC, we want to continue that good work and become an integral part, not only of local health services, but of local communities as well.”
