Health and social care 'hubs' handed £6m start-up cash

Published on Wednesday 10 March 2010 08:45

SIX Lothian social start-ups have received nearly £6 million of funding to help get their operations off the ground.

The Scottish Futures Trust has awarded start-up funding to the first tranche of "hub initiatives" – public-private partnerships to create new health and social care projects.

Blackburn Partnership Centre – which will replace a host of local amenities in one new facility – will receive the biggest share of the local funding totalling 1.5m.

The project is a joint development between NHS Lothian, which is delivering five out of the six projects in partnership with local authorities, and West Lothian Council.

James McCaffery, chief operating officer of NHS Lothian and chair of the hub South East Territory Board, said: "This funding will allow us to progress these projects which will deliver real benefits across Lothian."

NHS Lothian is also working with Edinburgh City Council to deliver the Firrhill Health and Social Care Centre and the Wester Hailes Healthy Living Centre, which will receive about 1m each for a range of physical and mental health services, and the Muirhouse Partnership Centre, which will receive 181,000.

The hub initiative aims to deliver new community infrastructure worth more than 1 billion over the next ten years.

A hub brings community partners, such as health boards and local authorities, together with a private sector development partner and is a catalyst towards increased joint working and the sharing of services.

Barry White, Scottish Futures Trust chief executive, said: "Hubs will provide excellent value for money as organisations across Scotland seek to improve their local infrastructure and deliver better public services.

"Similar initiatives elsewhere have led to increased public use of facilities, increased take-up of services and high levels of satisfaction among users."

Finance secretary John Swinney said: "The construction of modern community facilities has the added benefit of boosting construction sector jobs and helping to position the Scottish economy for recovery."