Apr 5 2005
The transfer of the NHS portfolio to English Partnerships will boost the agency’s national regeneration programme and provide a significant contribution to the First Time Buyers’ initiative.
This is the result of an agreement between the ODPM (Office of the Deputy Prime Minister) and the Department of Health announced today (l April 2005) and will involve the handover of an initial 67 out of a total of 96 sites. John Lewis, Director Strategic Joint Ventures Division for English Partnerships said that the transfer is a major milestone in joined-up government thinking resulting in the more effective use of surplus public sector land.
“The transfer is the result of a strategy English Partnerships initiated on behalf of the ODPM to identify how public sector agencies could work together in a smarter way and at the same time maximise the potential of their assets,” said Lewis. He added, “This deal is an excellent example of two departments building strong working relationships to achieve a mutually beneficial result. We have now successfully established this form of working protocol across a number of agencies, including Defence Estates, and created a mechanism that will be crucial in generating a long-term supply line of development sites that will contribute to the government’s regeneration agenda.”
A substantial number of the sites, totalling around 1,600 ha, will be used to respond to housing needs, especially those presented by the first time buyers market and to promote the regeneration of priority areas in line with the Sustainable Communities Plan. Although more detailed analysis has yet to be carried out, it is estimated that the NHS sites could accommodate up to 15,000 new homes nationally, with at least 5,000 being affordable. English Partnerships has been charged by government with running the First Time Buyers’ initiative (FTBi) and is currently developing a delivery plan that will dovetail with the consultation programme launched by the ODPM on HomeBuy:Expanding the Opportunity to Own today. The FTBi will build on ideas already being implemented by English Partnerships through its London-Wide Initiative, which will be the first pilot to deliver homes for sale to first time buyers. As part of the ongoing strategy to utilise assets more effectively, English Partnerships maintains The Register of Surplus Public Sector Land which now holds details of more than 3,600 ha of property across more than 700 sites and includes returns from over 30 government bodies. This is in addition to the NHS portfolio.
The NHS portfolio, along with other EP-owned land, will now be assessed to see how individual sites can contribute to local housing and employment needs across the country.