The department has published its strategy to accelerate the release of public sector land to help local communities and the NHS and follows David Flory’s letter to the service on 22 July. The initiative was announced on 8 June 2011 by the Minister of State for Housing and Local Government.
You can see the strategy on the Department of Health website.
Health Minister Simon Burns said:
“There is potentially over 430 hectares of surplus land within the NHS estate which is not being used for patient care or to benefit the local community. This is equivalent to over 600 football pitches which could provide an estimated 11,000 new homes.
“This represents a huge cost when mapped out across the NHS which is why we need to be smarter with our resources. Selling underused land means that the NHS is able to reduce its costs and reinvest money into frontline NHS care, whilst the available land can benefit society and go towards building new homes.
“A more productive and modern NHS is vital if we are to create a health service that is sustainable, cost effective and can cope with the increasing demands in the future.”