1 29 Hospitals Invited to Form First Wave of NHS Foundation Trust ApplicationsHealth Secretary Alan Milburn today published the names of 29 NHS trusts which will form the first wave of applicants for NHS Foundation Trust status, subject to Parliament passing the Health and Social Care Bill, in April 2004. The Bill is currently in the House of Commons Standing Committee having received its Second Reading on Wednesday 7 May 2003. The list of 29 NHS trusts will help inform Parliamentary scrutiny of the Bill. The applications will be submitted by Autumn 2003. Ministers will then take decisions about which applicants proceed to establishment as NHS Foundation Trusts in April 2004. Mr Milburn stressed the importance Ministers would place on assessing final applications from potential NHS Foundation Trusts which contribute to raising standards across the NHS. Applications would be particularly welcome which contain concrete proposals for assisting neighbouring hospitals to raise their own standards of performance so that they too can make progress towards achieving NHS foundation status for themselves. All NHS hospitals will have the opportunity of becoming a NHS Foundation Trust over the next four or five years. Subject to Parliament, the first NHS foundation trusts would be up and running by April 2004. The shortlisted trusts will now be asked to submit their detailed applications which must include full consultation with their local communities and other health stakeholders. The outcome of this consultation will form the basis for the final applications. Final applications for NHS Foundation Trust status will: produce a plan in line with the local strategic vision for how the greater freedoms NHS Foundation Trusts will have will be used to improve patient services set out proposed membership and governance arrangements including composition of the Board of Governors develop an HR policy in consultation with staff.
Health Secretary Alan Milburn today published the names of 29 NHS trusts which will form the first wave of applicants for NHS Foundation Trust status, subject to Parliament passing the Health and Social Care Bill, in April 2004.
The Bill is currently in the House of Commons Standing Committee having received its Second Reading on Wednesday 7 May 2003. The list of 29 NHS trusts will help inform Parliamentary scrutiny of the Bill.
The applications will be submitted by Autumn 2003. Ministers will then take decisions about which applicants proceed to establishment as NHS Foundation Trusts in April 2004.
Mr Milburn stressed the importance Ministers would place on assessing final applications from potential NHS Foundation Trusts which contribute to raising standards across the NHS. Applications would be particularly welcome which contain concrete proposals for assisting neighbouring hospitals to raise their own standards of performance so that they too can make progress towards achieving NHS foundation status for themselves. All NHS hospitals will have the opportunity of becoming a NHS Foundation Trust over the next four or five years.
Subject to Parliament, the first NHS foundation trusts would be up and running by April 2004. The shortlisted trusts will now be asked to submit their detailed applications which must include full consultation with their local communities and other health stakeholders. The outcome of this consultation will form the basis for the final applications.
Final applications for NHS Foundation Trust status will:
Mr Milburn also said that if NHS trust applicants failed to retain their three star status in the next round of NHS performance ratings - due this summer - they would lose their opportunity to become an NHS Foundation Trusts in this first wave and would have to improve their performance before they could reapply.
Alan Milburn said:
"The whole idea of NHS Foundation Trusts came out of discussions with NHS hospitals. There has been substantial interest from NHS hospitals in becoming one of the first generation of NHS Foundation Trusts.
"They will be NHS hospitals but with greater freedom to run their own affairs. Freeing NHS Foundation Trusts from day to day Whitehall control will encourage greater local innovation in how services are delivered.
"They will help put doctors, nurses and other frontline staff in the driving seat and give a far greater say to local communities over how hospitals are run.
"Communities in poorer parts of the country will particularly benefit.
"NHS Foundation Trusts are part of our wider reform programme to open up the NHS so that it provides more responsive services to patients.
"Where these first 29 lead I hope the rest of the NHS will follow. Subject of course to Parliament I want every NHS hospital to have the opportunity of becoming an NHS Foundation Trust over the next four to five years.
"We are providing extra help and support so that no NHS hospital is left behind. I will particularly welcome applications from these 29 NHS hospitals showing how they intend to work with other local NHS hospitals to improve services there.
"With more resources going into the NHS this is not the time to slow down on reform. It is the time to speed it up so that patients get a better service."
The 29 trusts are:
Three trusts were not shortlisted. These are: East Cheshire, Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases and Frimley Park. In each case the Trusts have decided to defer establishing as NHSFTs until October 2004 in order to give them more time to improve and be better placed to make a success of the new model.
Twelve out of the 29 NHS trusts given the go ahead are in the bottom 25% of the most deprived areas in the country. NHS Foundation Trusts will help address their problems of poor health by having greater freedoms to tackle local health inequalities and by having greater community input in decision making.
Notes to Editors:
1. The twelve trusts are in the most economically deprived areas in England. They are:
2. For further information, media enquiries only, please call Brenda Irons-Roberts, Department of Health, media centre, on 020 7210 5724.