Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to divert non-emergency acute footfall away from the Leicester Royal Infirmary by expanding localised diagnostic and chronic disease management facilities in Leicester East constituency.

We are working to deliver 250 neighbourhood health centres by 2035. The first 120 centres, expected by 2030, will be delivered through the NHS Neighbourhood Rebuild Programme using a mix of public investment and a new model of public–private partnerships.

On 15 April 2026, we published neighbourhood health centre guidance and specifications, to support regions and integrated care boards (ICBs) in developing their neighbourhood health estate strategies and pipelines. This guidance sets out the criteria that will guide the ICB funding prioritisation and national assurance, including strategic alignment with neighbourhood health objectives, population need, deliverability, value for money, and financial sustainability.

We are currently assessing neighbourhood health centre proposals submitted by ICBs. We received proposals from all regions, and all those submitted by the 28 May 2026 deadline are being assessed against the published criteria. Decisions have not yet been finalised, and it would therefore be premature to comment on any individual location. ICBs hold the relevant information on neighbourhood health centre proposal submissions, and we encourage MPs to continue to engage with their local ICB as schemes are developed.