Two areas in Lancashire and South Cumbria to be part of the national Neighbourhood Health Implementation Programme

• Health and local authority leaders give their feedback on the major government announcement
• Blackburn with Darwen and Morecambe Bay included in wave one, but programme will benefit wider Lancashire and South Cumbria footprint

Thousands of people in Lancashire and South Cumbria are set to benefit from improved care closer to home, as the government begins to support further development of neighbourhood health services.

Blackburn with Darwen and Morecambe Bay are among 43 places across England that will benefit from the support of national and regional teams to work with local leaders and communities to further develop neighbourhood health services.

Under the Neighbourhood Health Implementation Programme, each place will draw together a range of professions and organisations to develop ‘neighbourhood health teams’ consisting of community nurses, hospital doctors, social care workers, pharmacists, dentists, optometrists, paramedics, social prescribers, local government organisations and the voluntary sector – giving people easier and more joined up access to the right care and support closer to their own homes.

They will initially focus on supporting people with long term conditions such as diabetes, respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, and those people who are frail with multiple and complex health and care needs. It will centre around areas with the highest levels of deprivation and inequalities. As the programme grows, it will expand to support other residents and priority cohorts.

The ICB’s chief nurse, Jane Scattergood, who has also led on bringing neighbourhood health services to Morecambe Bay, said: “Working in neighbourhoods alongside partners and communities is a really important part of the NHS’ 10-year health plan and a shift to supporting and improving health and wellbeing. 

 “It is great for Lancashire and South Cumbria to be part of this programme because it will support great work which is taking place in Morecambe Bay and Blackburn with Darwen, but also in neighbourhoods across the region where we are also seeing some great collaboration and neighbourhood initiatives which are improving the experiences of our residents. 

 “Our footprint covers a wide geographic area, including urban, coastal and rural communities across three counties - Lancashire, Cumbria and North Yorkshire. Despite this huge geography, partners have a strong history of working collaboratively to support the needs of our residents in different areas and design services that respond to local challenges and maximise local community assets. Being selected to participate in wave one of this programme is a fantastic reflection of our hard work to date and an exciting opportunity for us to do much more in our neighbourhoods to offer preventative, person-centred care.”

Claire Richardson, director of health and care integration for Blackburn with Darwen, said: “This is a wonderful opportunity for us to build on our current integrated working in our Blackburn with Darwen neighbourhoods and really start to transform the care we deliver to local residents.

“Being recognised as a pioneer site is a testament to the strong bonds and amazing collaborative work we do together across health, local government and the voluntary sector in Blackburn with Darwen. All our local organisations are looking forward to working with the national team to continue creating better outcomes for our communities and ensuring we are doing all we can to keep people safe and well at home.”

Neighbourhood health will benefit patients by providing end-to-end care and tailored support, looking beyond a single condition and instead supporting individuals and their families with their overall health and wellbeing, helping to avoid unnecessary trips to hospital, preventing unnecessary complications or exacerbations in managing their condition, and avoiding the frustration of being passed around the health and care system.

The wave one programme will begin in autumn 2025, and will support our ambitions to expand our neighbourhood-based working over the coming year. As wave one participants, colleagues in Morecambe Bay and Blackburn with Darwen will learn from other sites across the country and will share their learning with other places and neighbourhoods within the Lancashire and South Cumbria footprint. This will ensure that places such as Blackpool and Chorley and South Ribble can be fast-followers in the design and implementation of neighbourhood health.   

Daniel Matchett, Lancashire County Council cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said: "The Morecambe Bay area, including North Lancashire, is one of the first to benefit from this roll out, which will see more services delivered closer to home and ensure that care is kept within the local community.

"We will continue working closely with our NHS partners to make sure this programme delivers real benefits for residents as it expands across the county.

"This approach reflects the current national government’s NHS 10-year plan and returns us to a model of care that has been championed many times before, offering a renewed focus on strengthening care and support within the communities where people live."

Patricia Bell, cabinet member for adults, health and care for Westmorland and Furness Council, said: “This is fantastic news for residents of South Cumbria and reflects the great partnership work and community health focus already taking place in this area.

"We all aspire to ‘holistic’ and ‘joined-up’ approaches to supporting health and wellbeing and this programme will really help drive this further forward and make those terms a transformational reality for many more people.”

Councillor Phil Riley, leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council, said: “I'm really pleased that Blackburn with Darwen has been chosen as one of the first areas that will benefit from local access healthcare.

“We are always looking at ways that will make our residents life easier and work closely with our partners to achieve this. Our neighbourhood health teams will be working with residents with long-term health conditions so they can soon benefit from these individualised new plans.”

More details about the Neighbourhood Health Implementation Programme can be found at Neighbourhood Health - Home.

More stakeholder responses

Aaron Cummins, chief executive at University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay Trust, said: “We are absolutely thrilled that Morecambe Bay has been chosen to be part of wave one of this revolutionary programme.

“This reflects the incredible collaborative work that has been happening on the ground within our neighbourhoods over the last few years and will allow us to work even closer to bring the right care and support to the doorsteps of our communities.”

Arif Patel, deputy chief integration officer at East Lancashire Hospitals, said: “One of the reasons we have been successful in becoming one of just a handful of pilots from a huge list of areas that applied is because we already work together across Blackburn and Darwen to improve services for local people – and we’re doing some great things already.

“This includes ensuring people are able to access and receive the care they need in the place they need it, no matter which part of the wider system is providing it. We already have great community services supporting patients in their health centres, nursing and care homes, in their own homes, often through virtual wards. This is critical to helping people who don’t need to be in hospital to stay safe and well. This new neighbourhood programme is going to help us to do even more.”

Dr Mohammed Umer, clinical director for Blackburn with Darwen Primary Care Networks, said: “This is well-earned recognition of the efforts our GPs and our health, and care organisations put in to work collaboratively to serve our population. It is a critical opportunity to strengthen our local partnerships, building on the excellent work already happening in our neighbourhoods. 

“Focusing on preventative care and shifting care to the community, we can ensure improvements are driven by local people and clinicians and is tailored to the needs of the community.”

Dr Arun Thimmiah, chair of the the General Practice Leadership Team, made up of the Local Medical Committee, Primary Care Networks and GP Federation in Morecambe Bay, welcomed the announcement of Morecambe Bay’s selection as a neighbourhood health service. He said: “Morecambe Bay has a rich history of collaboration. This pilot offers exciting opportunities to deliver more integrated care in the community, and to showcase how robust primary care services can work with system partners to deliver truly person-centred care for the people of Morecambe Bay.”

Richard Webb, corporate director of health and adult services for North Yorkshire Council, said: “We look forward to working with partners across health and social care to deliver more personalised, community-based care for the patients we serve.

“We’re delighted to be part of this successful bid, which covers some of the most rural communities in North Yorkshire, Westmorland and Furness and Lancashire, as well as towns and cities. We look forward to the learning being shared and the opportunity being available for more people to benefit from a preventative and more local approach to care.”

Councillor Caroline Jackson, leader of Lancaster City Council, said: “We are delighted to be a partner in this fantastic project. It’s a great opportunity to build on our work with local health, care, and community partners to deliver better outcomes for residents.

“By coming together at a neighbourhood level, we can deliver more joined-up support that improves people’s health, reduces inequalities, and builds stronger communities.”

Councillor Mark Fryer, leader of Cumberland Council, said: "I'm really pleased to hear that people in south Cumberland will be amongst the first to benefit from the government's new neighbourhood-based health programme. Improving health and wellbeing is at the heart of everything we do at Cumberland Council, and we're looking forward to working with local NHS colleagues and partners to help make sure this initiative is a success."