Landscape. Information, news and developments from NHS Property Services Ltd

Transcription

1 Information, news and developments from NHS Property Services Ltd Recruitment to specialist roles underway Around 300 applications were received for 31 new roles advertised in specialist areas, such as finance, IT and communications, as well as in regional offices, for NHS Property Services Ltd. The quality of applications highlights that many people think that our new company will have an important role in the reformed NHS. The process to transfer around 3,000 professionals in estates, property and facilities is now almost complete, as details of posts have been clarified with SHAs and PCTs across England. Alan Farmer, Director of Corporate Services explained: We have now had a complete picture of all the posts that are likely to transfer to the company under TUPE. We are due to publish shortly our People Transition Policy and we continue to work closely with sender organisations on the arrangements for transfer. Progress is also being made on a new payroll system for the company. SBS has been selected as the organisation who will deliver the new payroll system. Property Services Issue 2 December 2012 Our new website A new dedicated website for NHS Property Services has been launched. Our website will provide all the latest information about NHS Property Services as we move towards launch in April We welcome any news, information or updates you have for the site or any suggestions, comments or feedback. Shortlisting has taken place and interviews are underway. Simon Holden, chief Executive said: I have been pleased by the number of people who are interested in coming to work for NHS Property Services. The new pay date for the company has been set for the 29th of the month, for those employees paid monthly. The first pay day for employees will therefore be 29 April 2013.

2 Local Area Team Co-ordinators meet to discuss business Local Area Team Co-ordinators across the country met with Directors to discuss progress in setting up NHS Property Services. The group discussed a range of issues from contracts, property compliance, funding, risk management, staffing and programme management, as well as finance, payroll and capital planning. Speaking after the event, Tony Griffiths, Regional Director for London, said: The LAT Coordinators will play a key role in building and developing the new organisation and so it is beneficial that we work together on how best to take the organisation forward. We plan to meet as a group monthly so that we can gain valuable insight on key issues about the set up of NHS Property Services. Community Health Partnerships to take on LIFT schemes A decision has been made nationally that Community Health Partnerships will assume responsibility for NHS Local Improvement Finance Trust (LIFT) schemes. Primary Care Trusts interest in NHS LIFT will transfer to CHP, a limited company wholly owned by the Department of Health, from April As the Department of Health s LIFT delivery company, CHP has specific expertise in managing these public / private partnerships and has developed strong relationships with the private sector, and already holds 20% shareholding in each of the 49 LIFT companies nationally. Primary Care Trusts that have interests in LIFT have been asked to update their property transfer schedules, as part of the planning for property transfers exercise set out by a letter to the service from David Flory in May NHS Property Services will assume responsibility for the day-to-day running of the LIFT estate, under a service contract with CHP. Simon Holden, Chief Executive of NHS Property Services Ltd, said: We are pleased that Community Health Partnerships has been confirmed as assuming responsibility for all interests held by Primary Care Trusts in Local Improvement Finance Trust (LIFT) schemes after PCTs cease to exist from April We look forward to working with CHP and other partner organisations to ensure a high standard of NHS buildings and premises which support the delivery of quality NHS patient care. We are continuing to work with partner organisations to confirm future responsibilities for all property and assets previously owned by Primary Care Trusts. This work is almost complete and is likely to cover around 3,600 properties and other assets transferring to NHS Property Services Ltd. Information, news and developments from NHS Property Services Ltd Landscape December

3 Emerging picture for NHS Property Services assets Over the past few months a lot of work has gone into clarifying the range of estate, property and services that will transfer to NHS Property Services Ltd in April Latest information now shows that almost half of the assets that will transfer to the company will come from Primary Care (43.8%) of which 30% is made up of polyclinics, GP practices and treatment centres. In addition to this almost a fifth (17.9%) will be administrative facilities such as offices. Acute hospitals will make up 2.9% of assets transferred, while community services will make up 3.2% and land 2.4%. The picture is not yet complete, but gives a good indication of the wide range of assets. The range will include: GP practices Health centres Dental Practices Children s centres Learning Disability services Mental Health Services Pharmacy Community Hospitals Supported Housing Walk-in centres News from the regions South A lot of work is currently underway to shortlist and arrange interviews for the recently advertised positions in the regions and other executive team roles. Plans are being put in place to carry out the Asset Management interviews. Due to the volume of appointments to be made and the Executive Team and Regional Directors helping with the interview process across the board, it may not be possible to carry out the Programme interviews for the South until January. However plans are in place to contact those shortlisted soon. In addition, James Wakeham is working with the LAT Co-ordinators to develop an overview of the portfolio for each LAT part of the region. This will include details of the properties being transferred (mapping of the data has already taken place), the people being transferred including the related organisational structures, other key data such as backlog maintenance, PCT plans and capital programmes. This will enable an understanding of the strategic and operational challenges facing the region and alignment with the Commissioning Board and CCG plans. Furthermore, James and the LAT Co-ordinators will be meeting key members of the Commissioning Board to present this in the future. James would like to thank to all staff who are helping with this challenging project and looks forward to working closely with you in the future. Information, news and developments from NHS Property Services Ltd Landscape December

4 News from the regions Midlands and East The progress in developing the framework for NHS Property Services continues apace. There is an immense amount of goodwill and underlying support for the company and the potential it has in the future. Key actions to report in this edition are: Continuing the Regional Director visit programme to all areas of the region to answer questions and address concerns that are raised by the people who deliver the services on the ground. Receiving information on the risk areas across the region from the perspective of the local area coordinators (who are now all in place) and the local area Directors of the NHS Commissioning Board who we are also meeting as part of the development programme. Progressing the HR process to confirm who is transferring to the company. Midlands and East is the first to complete this exercise despite the challenges posed by the data collection exercise Appointment of the first regional managerial post. Stuart Greenacre has been appointed as the Midlands & East Regional Head of Finance. Stuart brings a blend of his commercial experience and technical financial expertise to the region along with his immense enthusiasm for the future of the Company. North Staff across the North have made huge progress in finalising and uploading documentation on the asset transfer list. This is now nearing completion and we await the reports from the lawyers appointed to undertake the due diligence. Estates staff are working closely with colleagues in their Primary Care Trusts to prepare the legacy reports and financial data returns. This is providing the groundwork for the NHS Property Services Local Area Team (LAT) Co-ordinators to map issues, document current procedures and systems and identify and manage risks across the LATs. The LAT Co-ordinators have now started to meet every two weeks to share learning and develop consistent approaches across the North. Work on establishing the administrative bases for the new organisations, including NHS Property Services, is progressing well and the final locations are due to be confirmed soon. At this stage it is appropriate to give a huge expression of thanks to you for supporting the development of the region in your local areas and a full acknowledgement that we have progressed a lot of the development but still have a lot more work to do in other areas, said Martin Royal, Regional Director. Please let me know if you have concerns by ing me on: martinroyal@nhs.net / martin.royal@ property.nhs.uk and I will make sure these issues are addressed. The advertisements for the new asset manager, strategy, HR, communications, finance and secretarial posts working at regional level of NHS Property Services have been placed and interviews will commence shortly. As appointments are made these will be published in future newsletters. I would like to say a huge thank you to all staff across the North for their energy, flexibility and ideas being made for the future. This makes such a difference to how we progress through this transition phase and for the future of NHS Property Services said Kathryn Berry, Regional Director London Work continues with PCT HR and Estate to understand and agree the lists of staff who will transfer into the company. The shadow London estates team continue to meet to develop a way of working for after April and have agreed a proposal for NHS Property Services to provide more leadership in the New Year. This was endorsed by the company s Board in this week and now needs approval from cluster Chief Executives. Shortlisting and interviewing are underway for the Regional team to allow us to be ready for the transition to full operational services Ian Brown, the LAT Co-ordinator has been developing a rich picture of the key issues that shadow team will have to address. Any questions or queries can be addressed to Tony tony.griffiths@property.nhs.uk or Ian ian.brown@ swlondon.nhs.uk Information, news and developments from NHS Property Services Ltd Landscape December

5 Finance The proposed finance staff structure Following the workshops held in October 2012 the finance team has developed a template structure for how finance support will be provided to estates staff from April The following structure is a representation of the template that will be followed in each Region and Locality. It is hoped that all the paperwork and approvals for this process will be completed before Christmas. At that point the team will be in a position to know which staff will TUPE into the company and the newly appointed regional heads of finance will decide how many staff, over and above those who will TUPE in, will be needed in each Local Area Team area. The plan is for recruitment to vacant posts to commence in early January. Deputy Regional Head of Finance (B9) x 1 wte Finance Assistant (B3 / 4) x 1 wte Introducing the finance team Caroline Rassell NHS Property Services Director Of Finance caroline.rassell@property.nhs.uk Senior Finance Manager (Capital) (B8b / 8c) x 1 wte Senior Finance Manager (Revenue) (B8c / 8d) x 1 wte Senior Finance Manager (Technical) (B8b / 8c) x 1 wte Jane Hanvey Project Lead for NHS Property Services Finance System jane.hanvey@property.nhs.uk Finance Analyst (B5 / 6) x 1 wte Ed King Finance Strategy Lead ed.king@property.nhs.uk Local Area Finance Teams Finance Manager (B7 / 8a) Management Accountant(s) (B5 / 6) Finance Assistant(s) (B3 / 4) Local Area Finance Teams Finance Manager (B7 / 8a) Management Accountant(s) (B5 / 6) Finance Assistant(s) (B3 / 4) Local Area Finance Teams Finance Manager (B7 / 8a) Management Accountant(s) (B5 / 6) Finance Assistant(s) (B3 / 4) Information, news and developments from NHS Property Services Ltd Landscape December

6 Finance Finance staff workshops The finance team were delighted to welcome more than 250 finance and estates professionals from across the NHS to eight workshops which they held during October It was a great opportunity to put faces to a number of names who had been corresponding with the team. The sessions have helped the team s thinking in many areas and in particular with the development of the finance structure. Are you a finance professional looking for a new challenge? NHS Property Services Ltd is looking for four Regional Heads of Finance to support the four Regional Directors. These will be key appointments for the NHS Property Services finance team, and will carry a lot of responsibility for ensuring the finance function is operating effectively across each region. The roles will assist the RDs to implement the organisational strategy within their areas. Future finance events The finance team is holding a number of events over the coming months: December - Finance System Process Workshops for Estates and Finance staff January a number of procurement workshops January - sessions across the regions with Estates and Finance staff looking at how we work together and to start the initial planning of the 2013/2014 capital programme February - teach in sessions, specially aimed at looking at the accounting rules which NHS Property Services will operate under To find out more and to book a place please contact jane.hanvey@property.nhs.uk In addition to these posts we are also looking for a National Head of Financial Transition to assist the company in making itself cost efficient. A big part of this remit is to set up a procurement function for the company that will work across the county. These posts and the other opportunities within NHS Property Services Ltd are on NHS Jobs. Information, news and developments from NHS Property Services Ltd Landscape December

7 Programme Managers to lead on key areas of work Four Programme Manager roles have been established to lead on key areas of work for the new company. The areas are sustainable development, health and safety, asset management and organisational development and signal some of the big pieces of work that are required to be done between now and April 2013 to prepare the new company for some of the challenges ahead. It is important we bring in skilled people to lead on some of our priority areas such as the important area of health, safety and compliance, as well as the major challenge for the NHS in ensuring our estate is efficient, sustainable and fit for the future, said Simon Holden, Chief Executive. We also need to develop the organisation and ensure the safe transfer of thousands of assets. Recruitment of Chief Operating Officer and Non-Executive Directors The Regional Directors and Acting Director of Asset Management, Pamela Chapman, met the potential Chief Operating Officer applicants earlier this month and they were interviewed by a panel. An update on an appointment is expected soon. The company is also seeking Non-Executive Directors for the Board and is seeking people with a range of expertise from finance, property, public and corporate sectors. We have now produced an extensive set of questions and answers which we hope will go some way to help people understand what NHS Property Services is all about and how it fits within the new NHS. These will be available on the new website which was launched earlier this month. These are very much an on-going, work-in-progress, there will always be more that can be added and we would welcome any suggestions that any of you may have. Please information@property.nhs.uk if you have thoughts or suggestions to be included. Information, news and developments from NHS Property Services Ltd Landscape December

8 Clarity on Leases and Tenancies The vast majority of existing leases and tenancies are already fully documented by legal agreements and these will transfer to the company. The existing arrangements will simply be passed on to NHS Property Services on the 1st April In the case of new occupiers e.g. Clinical Commissioning Groups, Arm s Length Bodies and Commissioning Support Services, they will be able to take accommodation on the terms outlined below and these terms will be reflected in the relevant Memorandum of Occupation: Leaseholds: If NHS Property Services hold a property on lease, then the main terms of the Head Lease, including the rent and any service charges (apportioned to the part of the building to be occupied unless the remainder cannot be separately let) will simply be passed through to new occupiers. We welcome your feedback and comments. NHS Property Services Ltd 452C Skipton House, 80 London Road London SE1 6LH Tel: information@property.nhs.uk Freeholds: In the cases where NHS Property Services Ltd owns the freehold of a property, rent will be on a simple cost recovery basis. The services will vary from building to building but as a minimum are likely to include external and structural repairs. The cost of any services will be included in a service charge. In all cases, occupiers will only be expected to pay for the cost of accommodation taken, not for other voids in the building. Information, news and developments from NHS Property Services Ltd Landscape December