What we do
Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust
Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust’s aim is to be the best local provider of high quality, innovative health services near people's homes, working closely with partners so people receive well co-ordinated, effective care.
Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust provides a range of community-based health services for adults and children in Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, and some services to people in surrounding areas.
Our services range from district nursing and health visiting, to physiotherapy and specialist community clinics.
You can see all of the services we provide in our handy A-Z of services.
Where we fit in the local NHS
How healthcare in Shropshire is managed
Healthcare in Shropshire is largely managed by four types of organisation:
Integrated Care Systems (ICS)
A partnership of NHS and local government organisations, alongside independent and voluntary sector groups, working closely to transform health and care services to deliver world class care which meet current and future needs of our rural and urban populations.
Community health services
Community health services across the county are managed by our own Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust - we provide:
- services at the county’s community hospitals in Bridgnorth, Whitchurch, Ludlow and Bishops Castle
- District Nursing, Health Visiting and a wide range of other services provided outside the main hospitals, in people’s homes and close to them.
Shropshire's major hospitals
The three major hospitals in Shropshire provide acute in-patient, out-patient and emergency services, and are managed by:
- The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH)
- Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Mental health services
- Mental health services are provided by the Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.
While NHS community services may not always be as visible to the public as the main hospitals, they play a vital role in supporting very many people who live with ongoing health problems, enabling them in many cases to continue to live at home. This is especially important in a large area such as ours, with increasing numbers of elderly people and others, including children and young people, with long term health conditions.
As a Community Trust, we have a unique role as an essential ‘connector’ in the local health system, working directly alongside the many organisations that also provide care and support to people.
We are proud to be a Trust dedicated to providing services in local communities, working closely with GPs and the main hospitals, and with health staff experienced in community-working.
Your local NHS
About Community Health Services...
Over 90% of all the contacts that people have with the NHS are not in acute hospitals such as the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and Princess Royal Hospital in Telford.
Many more NHS patients consult their GP, or are visited in their own home by a district nurse or health visitor, than go into an acute hospital for treatment.
Given the central role that community health services play in delivering NHS care, it is vital that they are as patient-focused and efficient as possible.
In a time when there is large-scale change for the NHS nationally, we are creating stability and developing local services for local people as a new NHS organisation dedicated to community-based services. We want to strengthen and improve those services in the new NHS and at the same time ensure that we stay true to the traditional caring values of the NHS.
We know that we need to continually innovate in the way that we deliver our services and we will continue to work closely with staff, GPs, the local acute hospitals and social care to make sure we are adopting the best, most effective care for patients.
Good community health services prevent the need for some patients to be admitted to hospital, including those with chronic conditions such as diabetes, asthma, chest disease, arthritis, hypertension, osteoporosis and stroke. People have told us that we should help patients manage their own condition and stay healthy enough not to have to spend time in hospital, unless they really need to. This is especially important as we continue to care for an ageing population.
A strong and viable local NHS Community Health Trust can achieve this by ensuring easy access to responsive and continually improving services across the whole of Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin. When people do need to be admitted to hospital, we work closely with local acute hospitals to make sure this happens efficiently.
Partner organisations
Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust works with a range of local and regional organisations in order to develop community health and other healthcare services. These organisations include:
- Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Integrated Care System - was known as the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG)
- Shropshire Council
- Telford and Wrekin Council
- The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH)
- Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (MPFT)
- Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (RJAH)
- Powys Local Health Board
- Healthwatch Shropshire
- Healthwatch Telford and Wrekin
The Trust is also committed to working with patients, public and other community and voluntary sector groups to make sure that the services it provides are relevant to local people and provided in the best possible way for them.
Annual Budget
The Trust delivers services to around 456,000 people at an annual cost of about £73 million.
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