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Case for Change

Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) in Lancashire have invested £32 million in recent years and the trust has developed a wide range of community mental health services throughout the county. As a result, mental health services outside hospital are on a par with the best in the UK, offering high quality alternatives to inpatient care and treatment for a large number of people.

The trust is committed to ensuring that those who do require admission as an inpatient receive the highest standard of care, in an environment that meets their needs and aids their recovery. Following a public consultation exercise, completed by the PCTs across Lancashire, the trust is now planning to transform hospital services and bring them up to 21st century standards through a 10 year investment programme costing approximately £150 million.

Investment on this scale will allow the trust to continue to deliver high quality care and treatment in purpose-built, modern units and to develop new therapies that meet the changing needs of the people who use these services.

The trust’s vision for the future of inpatient mental health services and the building of three new specialist hospitals (excluding Lancaster and Morecambe) is based on the views of people who use our services, carers, advocates and staff following a successful public consultation by the Joint Committee of PCTs in 2006.To download the public consultation document click here.

Prior to its dissolution following the reconfiguration of PCTs in 2006, Morecambe Bay PCT consulted publicly on the need for a purpose built mental health inpatient unit in Lancaster and Morecambe, declaring this to be its preferred option. However, this was not affordable at the time and was not progressed to a business case. Following PCT reconfiguration, mental health services in Lancaster and Morecambe Bay were transferred to Lancashire Care which concluded in December 2006 that a fourth mental health inpatient site was affordable in the Lancaster area. The fourth unit was therefore added to the trust’s Mental health matters investment programme. The trust is now at an early stage in the development of proposals for the four new units.

Setting out the case

Outline proposals have been produced for the development of four new inpatient mental health units, which will replace 15 existing outdated units that no longer meet the expectations and needs of the people who use these services. The picture on the left shows an example of one of our dormitory style wards. 

The Strategic Outline Case (SOC) describes the trust's exciting proposals for the new facilities including smaller wards and single bedrooms that preserve the privacy and dignity of those using mental health services, overlook green space and are sited away from busy main roads and industry.

The proposals put forward in the SOC demonstrate the following:

• the health need for which the proposals have been developed
• clear support from organisations funding services
• clear public, service user, carer and staff support following the PCT consultations on the future of inpatient services in Lancashire and continuing involvement and engagement sessions
• that the programme is affordable and realistic
• that the trust has a strong management structure in place.

The production of business cases will result in:

• identification of a preferred site for each facility
• development of robust cost estimates
• development of detailed project plans
• assessment of project feasibility
• further involvement and engagement of stakeholders.

The timescale for implementation of the Mental health matters programme is: 

• Strategic Outline Case - November 2007
• Foundation Trust Status - December 2007
• Business Cases - 2009
• First unit completed - 2011
• Project concluded - no less than 10 years from date of commencement.

Affordability is a key issue and the trust believes that its financial plans are robust and that it has the track record, capability and capacity to deliver this major strategic programme of work.