KCHFT takes ownership of two community hospitals

The Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital (QVMH) in Herne Bay and Sevenoaks Hospital are the latest buildings to join the Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust (KCHFT) estate thanks to a Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) initiative.

DHSC invited NHS trusts to take ownership of healthcare buildings owned by NHS Property Services. Now six buildings across Kent have been transferred to KCHFT as part of the trust’s ongoing commitment to community care*.

Natalie Davies, Director of Corporate Services at KCHFT said: “Community hospitals are at the heart of local care. We firmly believe these buildings should be owned locally and developed with the community in mind.

“We now look forward to starting a long-awaited refurbishment programme at Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital as we work with colleagues, patients and the League of Friends to improve and revitalise the building for everyone who works, visits or uses the hospital. In Deal we have already invested more than £250k in making Victoria Hospital fit for the future with the installation of solar panels, refurbishments and improvements to the surrounding gardens.

“Working together with other healthcare providers, we hope our community hospitals will continue to develop as hub of community care providing a wide range of services from urgent treatment to social prescribing, available for all who need it.”

*College Road Clinic in Margate and Victoria Hospital in Deal were the first two buildings to be transferred in 2021 with Molehill Copse Clinic in Maidstone and Vicarage Lane Clinic in Ashford joining the trust earlier this year. The lease for Tonbridge Cottage Hospital has also been transferred to KCHFT.