The government and NHS England have published detailed plans for a network of neighbourhood health centres intended to replace the existing system of standalone GP surgeries with larger, multi-service facilities. The blueprint sets a target of 250 centres by 2035, with 120 expected to be operational by 2030. Each centre will be required to serve a population of roughly 50,000 and open for a minimum of 12 hours a day, six days a week.

What the centres will offer

The model is designed to bring a wider range of services under one roof. Alongside GP practices, centres will be expected to house mental health support, diagnostic services including blood tests and ultrasounds, social care, and advice on issues such as debt, which planners have categorised as a social determinant of health. Clinical teams across these services will share patient data through a common digital infrastructure.

The ambition is to redirect patients away from emergency departments by resolving a greater proportion of healthcare needs at community level. NHS planning documents describe this as a "left shift," moving treatment closer to where people live rather than concentrating it in acute hospital settings.

How the centres will be built and funded

The funding model distinguishes between upgrades to existing buildings, which will be publicly financed, and new constructions, which will depend heavily on private capital. Officials expect approximately 80% of new-build centres to be delivered through public-private partnerships. That figure will likely draw scrutiny given the mixed record of private finance arrangements in NHS infrastructure over the past two decades.

To support the programme, NHS trusts and local authorities are expected to dispose of older or substandard GP and community buildings, with proceeds directed into the new network. The plan does not specify how land sale receipts will be governed or whether the same Treasury rules that apply to other NHS asset disposals will affect how much funding trusts are able to retain and deploy.

Four models for different areas

Recognising that local conditions vary considerably, the guidance sets out four approaches from which health leaders must choose. The first involves modest refurbishment of existing community hospitals or clinics. The second covers the conversion of civic buildings such as libraries or leisure centres into health facilities. The third integrates existing specialist services, such as women's health or respiratory clinics, into the broader network. The fourth is a purpose-built new centre for areas where the current infrastructure is considered unfit for purpose.

Local NHS leaders have been given until 28 May 2026 to submit their strategic plans. Submissions will be assessed against seven criteria, including alignment with areas of low life expectancy and the financial viability of the proposed revenue model.

The implications for GP surgeries

The plan represents a significant structural change to how primary care is organised. The standalone GP surgery, which has been the standard model of community healthcare access in England for generations, is not explicitly abolished by the blueprint, but the policy direction is clear. Practices that cannot meet the requirements for designation as a neighbourhood health centre, or that sit in buildings judged unsuitable for the new model, face an uncertain future.

GP leaders have not yet issued a formal collective response to the detail of the guidance. The practicalities of co-locating multiple services, including organisations with different employers, contracts, and data systems, on a single site present considerable operational challenges that the blueprint acknowledges without fully resolving.

Central oversight and local accountability

The guidance places significant authority with NHS England and regional directors to approve or reject local proposals. Criteria such as "strategic alignment" and "financial sustainability" give central bodies considerable discretion over which projects proceed. For local authorities, which are expected to plan alongside NHS organisations rather than independently, the arrangement represents a further integration of health and local government responsibilities, though the governance structures that will manage disputes or delays between partners have not been detailed in the published documents.