York Teaching Hospital subco incorporated 7 March with Northumbria Healthcare Trust subco as partner

Companies House shows that York Teaching Hospital Facilities Management LLP was incorporated on 7 March 2018 with Northumbria Healthcare Facilities Management LLP as a partner.

Who knew?

At the 2nd March Health Campaigns Together meeting in Leeds, Michael Parkinson the Yorkshire region Unison rep reported on subsidiary companies being set up by hospital Trusts across Yorkshire and further afield and said that:

York are going ahead but slowly.

The news that the subco has now been set up comes as quite a shock.

It seems that no information has been put in writing for staff, according to a close observer of the situation.

Aren’t staff supposed to be consulted about anything that involves TUPE-ing them out of the NHS into a private company? This will affect many non-clinical staff who are responsible for keeping the hospital functioning and it seems they have been kept in the dark in an unforgivable manner.

The privatisation of the York Teaching Hospital facilities management services by setting up the subco seems to have been carried out by stealth. In a letter published in York Press on 13th March, Leigh Wilks of York and District TUC warned:

“York TUC – particularly those within our healthcare unions – are very dismayed to learn that York NHS Trust is planning to set up a Public Limited Liability company to outsource York NHS workers to the private sector.”

But the deed had already been done.

Update 15th March

A York Teaching Hospital employee reports,

“Now the trust are saying they have set up the new company but no decision has been made to transfer the staff as yet.’

NHS For Sale reports that

900 York Teaching Hospital Staff are expected to transfer to the subsidiary company. Its expected turnover is £40m.

The Trust expects £4.9m historical VAT recovery on capital schemes, £12m VAT savings on capital schemes over the next five years and up to £5.7m recurrent revenue savings.

And Leeds Teaching Hospitals has just told staff it’s setting up a subco too.