26 November 2004
Plans to save the NHS £220m over the next ten years by outsourcing back-office functions rely on a heavy take-up of the scheme, Public Finance has learned.
The Department of Health this week announced a joint venture with private firm Xansa, which will take over the NHS shared services centres and offer an outsourcing service to all NHS organisations in England, including trusts and strategic health authorities.
Services will include payment of invoices, VAT returns, debt collection and bank account reconciliation. NHS bodies will be free to look after these areas in-house or contract with the new service.
Shared services have been piloted at two sites – Leeds and Bristol – since 2001 but only 36 NHS organisations have joined the scheme. Public Finance understands that 50% (about 330 organisations) would have to join for the new joint venture to deliver the planned savings.
'We believe this is a realistic and achievable target, especially since those that contract with the new service will save around 20% of their current costs,' a department spokesman said.
Xansa and the DoH will each take a 50% share in the new company, NHS Shared Business Services Limited. There will be no redundancies and 230 NHS employees will keep their terms and conditions after they transfer to Xansa. The venture will officially launch next April 1.
Health minister John Hutton said: 'Moving ahead in this way will help the NHS streamline back-office functions, reduce bureaucracy and generate substantial savings for reinvestment in frontline services.'
PFnov2004
