MONTPELIER Health Centre has been chosen as one of the first new Neighbourhood Health Centres in England.
The centre will receive £200,000 from the Department of Health and Social Care for the initiative, enabling it to change the building’s layout to make better use of space so services can work together better.
Neighbourhood Health Centres aim to bring GP services together with community, council and voluntary sector support in one place.
The Government plans a network of 250 centres across the country. Montpelier is on the first 27 to be announced, along with Charlotte Keel Medical Practice in Eastville.
David Jarrett, Chief Strategic Commissioning Officer at NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICB, said: “We welcome this investment from the Department of Health and Social Care, which represents an important step in strengthening neighbourhood health services. While this is a nationally led programme, we look forward to working with partners – including NHS Property Services, who will support the delivery of these works – to ensure these improvements support local priorities and help deliver more joined-up, accessible care for our communities.”
Health Minister Stephen Kinnock said: “This government is transforming healthcare, so the NHS works around the lives of patients – not vice versa.
“We’re rolling out neighbourhood health centres across the country by repurposing and improving local buildings, first targeting the communities that need them most. These one-stop-shops will help end the maze of referrals and repeated conversations, treating not just poor health but the causes of it too.