NHS community health services are at the forefront of NHS care and support, and while they do not have the high public profile of other NHS services, they often reach the deepest into our lives. 

The role of community services has never been as well-defined or understood as it might be, meaning their potential to provide the sustainable core of the NHS and drive new models of care can be under-recognised.

This narrative sets out what is needed to realise the potential of community services. It calls for:

• commitment and leadership to move beyond rhetoric
• a new language and context
• appropriate governance and regulation
• the right workforce, with the right skills, recognition and rewards
• flexibility, coordination and core competencies.

Case studies from three of our community members highlight the work already under way:

• Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust - emergency multidisciplinary units
• Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust and Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust - multispecialty community provider
• Airedale NHS Foundation Trust - telehealth for frail elderly patients

Download the report below.