Overview

O1.

This strategy covers all aspects of the trust’s buildings, land and facilities support. The strategy complements other trust strategies, notably the clinical care and clinical technology and information strategies, as we make progress towards delivering KMPT’s organisational and clinical vision for the future. KMPT also needs to address the challenges set by the NHS Long Term Plan (LTP), delivering the Forward View - NHS planning guidance 2016/17 -
2020/21, Lord Carter’s Review on NHS trust operational productivity and Lord Naylor’s Review of NHS Property and Estates. This document sets out the trust’s ambition for a consistently high quality estate to support all its services to deliver outstanding care and treatment that the residents of Kent and Medway can be confident in.

O2.

The trust’s last major update of its estate strategy was in 2015, with a “refresh” in 2017. This new strategy is not a further refresh but a fundamental review of our estates and facilities operations and assets, which is timely for a number of reasons, mentioned above and set out below. Most of all, however, the trust wanted to engage as many people as possible in the thinking about estate, and this new strategy reflects as many of their thoughts
and ideas as possible.

O3.

Ensuring a safe and appropriate environment, maintaining its assets and facilities, and delivering excellent “hotel” facilities services are the core of what the trust does in the management of its estate. Although much of this work takes place “behind the scenes” a positive experience of KMPT services for those who use them or work in them depends, in part, on these support services being delivered efficiently and effectively. The primary concern to be addressed by the estates strategy is that of ensuring that it supports and enables delivery of clinical services as effectively as possible.

O4.

In relation to asset management, the strategy addresses how KMPT needs to optimise its assets to ensure best value for money and release funding for investment in new capital developments. In relation to growth, work continues to develop our thinking around service development plans as they impact on the trust’s key sites, taking into account opportunities and constraints in developing capital investment schemes.

O5.

Much has changed in the wider strategic health and social care landscape over the past two years. There has been increased emphasis on partnership and collaboration across the health and care system. Work is progressing on a Sustainability and Transformation Partnership (STP) for the NHS across Kent and Medway with estates and facilities issues developing a significant profile. KMPT is working closely with and, in many instances, leading some of this work with CCG and local authority commissioners and other NHS providers.

O6.

There is increasing emphasis across the NHS to improve our efficiency in the use of the estate to protect front line service delivery within available means. In particular, the 2016 review of operational productivity in the NHS by Lord Carter identified how NHS estate can be better utilised and set targets for reducing the amount of void and under-utilised estate, as well as the proportion of the estate required for non-clinical functions. Achieving or bettering the Carter benchmarks will be a key measure for how we are delivering best value for our estate as a whole.

O7.

The NHS property and estates review by Lord Naylor, published in 2017, identifies targets for NHS organisations to deliver in terms of releasing public sector assets to support housing growth, a key government objective. KMPT is proud of its record in this area, particularly since retaining surplus assets is a drain on trust resources for the frontline. Delivering improved productivity and efficiency, as part of establishing long term financial sustainability for the trust, will continue to be a focus for KMPT estates.

O8.

The strategy sets out how the trust plans to use its buildings to support changes to the way it delivers mental health services, in particular how it is planning the use of estate to support the trust’s clinical service delivery through clear clinical care pathways. This estate strategy begins to describe how KMPT will invest in and manage its estate effectively to ensure the right kinds of buildings in the right locations to support clinical care delivery. It also describes how the trust will harness the benefits of technology to ensure the care environment can be safe and secure while promoting the privacy, dignity and wellbeing of all who use trust buildings.

O9.

KMPT faces a number of challenges in ensuring it is able to meet the growing and changing needs of the local population. Kent and Medway have high proportions of older people among the population, likely to increase, and a number of both deprived areas and new town growth areas. Ensuring equity of access to services for all service users, addressing diversity and inclusion, working more closely with local authority and primary care partners and keeping at the forefront of excellent, effective care interventions are all great challenges which estate can play a part in. The trust needs to deploy the estate
effectively to ensure all patients benefit from the high quality environment they need and deserve, as well as ensure our trust is a welcoming place to work for all 3,318 members of staff and others who may visit trust facilities.

O10.

The main pillars of the trust strategy - maintaining and investing in a safe and fit for purpose care environment, using accommodation efficiently, disposing of surplus unfit accommodation, recycling capital receipts to support the investment programme - will not change. Over the past five years the trust has reinvested all capital receipts from surplus property disposals in its in-patient and community estate, a figure in excess of £20m. However, trust planning will need to be sufficiently flexible to respond to changing demands as the local health economy works together to determine how best to configure services to meet changing population need within available resources. KMPT has a central role in that strategic STP planning activity.

O11.

Although the way KMPT uses its estate will continue to evolve and respond to service developments and requirements, the principles of operation remain constant. Everything the trust does aims to deliver outstanding care and treatment which residents of Kent and Medway can be confident in, and rely upon.

John Carey
Director of Estates, Facilities and Capital Planning