Conclusion 1

NHS Property Services was set-up to fail: it was created with a muddled objective—it does not have the same powers as a commercial landlord but is expected to run parts of the estate for the Department of Health and Social Care and it inherited a range of long-standing issues. The Department did not set up NHS Property Services with the powers that a commercial landlord can use to enforce occupancy contracts and charges, because of the need to maintain the clinical services that its tenants provide. For example, it does not have access to conventional remedies such as legal action, penalty charges, cessation of services or eviction for NHS bodies. NHS Property Services also inherited a range of issues in 2013 including: limited data on properties and tenants; two-thirds of its tenants had no leases in place; tenants were not always fully charged for rent and services; and there were 2,400 different facilities management arrangements. The Department recognises that what was handed over to NHS Property Services was poorly defined and often not documented. The Department is currently undertaking a review of NHS Property Services which is due to report by the end of this year. Recommendation: The Department should ensure that its current review addresses the recommendations set out below and should report back to the Committee on progress by July 2020.