Staged financial close for NHS LIFT projects

Financial closure on most of the first tranche of NHS LIFT schemes will be staggered in order to speed up the procurement process.

This unusual approach to closure, which has funders' approval, will be test driven on the £142m East London and City scheme, where a staged financial close will begin on 25 April with the signing off of the Church Road scheme.

This process will continue with the Barking Road scheme signed off at the end of May and the East Ham Memorial Hospital scheme signing on 25 July. Planning permission has yet to be granted on the other three schemes. A further five schemes are still at design stage.

Brian Johns, chief executive of Partnerships for Health (the joint venture between the Department of Health and Partnerships UK that oversees the NHS LIFT initiative) said the staged financial close prevents delays caused by waiting for planning permission.

He added: "It makes sense to sort out the simpler leases, sign the shareholder and partnering agreements and set up the LIFTCo, which will then oversee the signing off of the other schemes as they gain planning permission. So the sooner the two sides are working together as a team in the LIFTCo, the better."

Johns said he expected most of the first tranche and some of the second tranche of NHS LIFT schemes will use a staged closure procedure. He added: "I don't expect the third tranche to follow this route because planning permission on those schemes will be that much more advanced."

The third tranche of 24 schemes is continuing to shortlist at a rapid pace.

Plymouth Hospitals Care Trust has announced the three frontrunners for its £55m NHS LIFT scheme as: Infracare; Midas; and MIM/Hamilton Corporate Finance.