The key component of the 10-Year Health Plan will first focus on areas with the lowest life expectancy with health teams focusing on patients with multiple long-term conditions and more complex issues.
Health and social care secretary, Wes Streeting, said: ‘Our 10 Year Health Plan committed to building a neighbourhood health service and we're hitting the ground running on delivering it.
‘If we are to get patients cared for faster, on their doorstep and even in their own home, then we need to shift the focus of the NHS from hospitals to the community.'
Health chiefs and local authority chief executives have been asked to submit applications for the roll-out of 42 sites in September in the first wave of the programme.
Successful applicants will join an intensive national coaching programme over the summer, including major workshop days that bring together experts, GPs and their teams, patients, the voluntary sector and local authorities.
A joint taskforce has been set up between the DHSC and NHSE to drive progress, chaired by Sir John Oldham and made up of NHS leaders, local authority bosses and other key figures from the voluntary sector and health and care organisations.
Ruth Rankine, primary care director and neighbourhood lead at the NHS Confederation, said: ‘We welcome the Government's swift action to accelerate the roll out of neighbourhood services across the country. Our members fully support the commitment to shift more care out of hospitals and into the community to provide better support for people with complex conditions and tackle health inequalities.
‘Ending "hospital by default" and shifting to a neighbourhood health service is a vital step to moving towards a new model of care which is personalised and coordinated around the needs of communities.
‘Our members will welcome the opportunity for greater collaboration that needs to underpin an effective neighbourhood health service, across the NHS as well as local government and the voluntary sector.
‘We look forward to working with the government on the implementation.'
