Serco Group plc ('Serco' or 'the Group'), the international service company, is pleased to confirm that it has now signed the contract with Barts Health NHS Trust for the provision of Soft Facilities Management Services. Serco previously announced on 22 September that it had been appointed Preferred Bidder for this tender. The signed contract has an estimated total contract value to Serco of approximately £600m over the maximum 10-year term; the initial contract period is for seven years, with the corresponding value for this initial period to be reflected in Serco’s order book, and the contract can be extended for a further three years on the mutual agreement of Serco and the Trust.
Barts Health NHS Trust provides a huge range of clinical services to the people of East London and beyond, operating from four major hospital sites (St Bartholomew’s, The Royal London, Whipps Cross and Newham) as well as a number of community locations including Mile End Hospital. Serco will also provide services to the East London Foundation Trust (ELFT) at the Mile End site which is recognised as a centre of excellence for mental healthcare. Barts Health NHS Trust is the largest NHS Trust in England serving a population of 2.5 million people and employing 16,000 staff. The Trust has an annual turnover of £1.4bn and last year its staff delivered over 16,500 babies, treated about 167,000 individual in-patients, dealt with more than 455,000 emergency cases, and hosted more that 1.5 million out-patient appointments.
Under the contract, across all of the Trust’s sites, Serco will be responsible for the provision of: cleaning and domestic services; linen and laundry; patient catering; portering services; car parking; reception and helpdesk; and other non-clinical general management and support services. These services had previously been provided by a number of separate suppliers against differing requirements and to different standards. Bringing all the services under a single contract will deliver consistent, high-quality services that will improve the patient experience and the working environment for Trust staff, and will also provide efficiency gains to the Trust which will help fund future patient care.
Service improvements will include: all sites being cleaned to the very latest and award-winning standards, including deployment of Serco’s innovative ‘Touchpoint’ cleaning system; seven-day linen services instead of the current five-day service; staff self-service enabled responsive portering services using Serco’s Computer-Aided Facilities Management Platform (CAFM); a new on-site, centralised, 24/7 multi-channel helpdesk service; electronic bedside meal ordering with ward hosts, freeing up significant amounts of nursing time; and the introduction of freshly cooked food to all sites, bringing a range of choice that reflects clinical and cultural needs as well as personal preferences.
The contract was awarded against criteria which prioritised service quality and patient experience as an integral part of the Trusts objective to deliver safe and compassionate care. Much of the development of the market leading delivery of these services was developed by Serco’s Global Healthcare Centre of Excellence.
Serco has built a strong portfolio in health over the past two decades. Key contracts where Serco provides facilities management to NHS England trusts include East Kent Hospitals, Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital and Derriford Hospital in Plymouth, and for NHS Scotland at Forth Valley Royal Hospital, Wishaw General Hospital and Dumfries & Galloway General Hospital. Serco’s international operations include facilities management and support services for Fiona Stanley Hospital in Perth, Australia, and the Cleveland Clinic in Abu Dhabi, and several other healthcare facilities in the Asia Pacific and Middle East regions.
The 1,200 permanent staff of the current service providers will be transferred to Serco with their terms and conditions protected. Serco and the Trust have both committed that all staff will be paid at least the London Living Wage. Whipps Cross University Hospital and Mile End Hospital will transfer services to Serco in December 2016, followed by St Bartholomew’s Hospital and the Royal London Hospital in April 2017 and Newham University Hospital and Newham Gateway in July 2017.
Rupert Soames, Serco Group Chief Executive, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with the Trust to give essential support to their ambition of transforming the health of East London residents by providing world class, patient-centred care. NHS providers face unprecedented demand and high service expectations with restricted funding. Serco has extensive experience in developing solutions that put the patient first, achieve the highest care standards and deliver sustainable quality and cost reduction. We therefore look forward to this important expansion of our Health business and we will do our utmost to ensure a safe and positive experience for every single patient, visitor and member of staff on all Barts Health sites.”
Stuart Ford,
Head of Investor Relations:
T +44 (0) 1256 386 227
Marcus De Ville,
Head of Media Relations:
T +44 (0) 1256 386 226
