Warnings that the ‘ongoing ’ ICB reorganisation could jeopardise the NHS and council estate deals needed for neighbourhood health have been issued by doctor’s union the British Medical Association (BMA).
The concerns were raised in the union’s written evidence to the Health and Social Care Committee’s estates inquiry into the role of NHS estates in delivering neighbourhood health.
The BMA highlighted that ‘unused’, or ‘under-used’ local authority space could play a role in delivering care closer to home.
But it said that ‘strong local relationships’ between the NHS and local government were crucial to making this work.
And it said that ‘ongoing reorganisation’ and ‘subsequent upheaval’ of ICBs risked undermining NHS agreements with councils about sharing estates.
ICB changes came into effect on 1 April 2026 -including a reduction from 42 to 36 ICBs – following the government’s call last year for ICBs to cut running costs by 50%. This is expected to result in about 12,500 less staff across the health system.
And the BMA has now raised concerns over the impact of these ongoing changes on relationships between the NHS and councils.
The BMA said that using local authority property had been ‘suggested in previous discussions about moving care into the community and better aligning local authority and NHS planning’.
The union also highlighted that non-NHS settings have been used successfully to offer services, such as community diagnostic centres in shopping malls.
‘However, the specific use of local authority spaces will require strong local relationships between NHS services and local government, something which the ongoing reorganisation of ICBs and their subsequent upheaval may undermine,’ it said.
In another part of its submission, the BMA said that investment in the primary care estate was ‘critical’ to delivering the neighbourhood health service.
In a report published earlier this year by the former NHS Confederation – now named NHS Alliance – the membership body spoke of the ‘opportunity’ to provide neighbourhood health centres beyond NHS buildings.
It said: ‘Council-owned community venues also offer excellent opportunities to locate health services with council and voluntary sector services that are already being accessed by the same local population.
‘Adding healthcare into these locations allows patients to access support for multiple needs in one visit and facilitates integrated working between services.’
Healthcare Leader contacted the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England for comment.
