The projects are backed by £1.5m from the Office for the Impact Economy, working with Macmillan Cancer Support and Social Finance.

Macmillan has committed to invest £250 million in neighbourhood health across the UK over the next three to five years and intends to act as a cornerstone investor in the Trailblazer sites, helping to attract other partners and investors and increase the funding available to transform care closer to home.

Macmillan's social investment approach is outcomes-based, with funding structured around achieving agreed improvements for people and the health and care system. The specific outcomes will vary between sites and will be agreed as part of each investment.

Social Finance will provide specialist expertise in innovative finance and investment models, helping sites develop approaches capable of mobilising impact investment.

Gemma Peters, chief executive of Macmillan Cancer Support, said: ‘Macmillan is proud to be a cornerstone investor, helping to unlock investment from others and to bring our expertise in reshaping healthcare. But this is the start of a journey. We want to see more investors backing neighbourhood health, with Government investors and local partners working together to create the conditions for new approaches to grow and spread, so more people can benefit from connected, personalised care closer to home.'

The six sites will develop and test new neighbourhood health models that bring together NHS services, councils, community organisations and local people to improve outcomes, tackle inequalities.

The programme builds on pioneering work developed by West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Macmillan Cancer Support and Social Finance.

The six selected sites and their proposals are: Bristol NHS Foundation Trust; Lewisham Health and Care Partnership and Healthier Greenwich Partnership; Navigo Health and Social Care CIC on behalf of North East Lincolnshire Health and Care Partnership; RM Partners and NCL NHS Cancer Alliance; North Nottinghamshire Partnership led by Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust; and York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.