The 2026/27 GP Contract brings a greater focus on access, GP capacity and prevention, alongside closer working between Primary Care Networks and the communities they serve.

At the same time, NHS systems are preparing for the next stage of neighbourhood health, with more joined-up care delivered closer to where people live.

For primary care providers, the challenge is turning these changes into tangible improvements for patients, while managing rising demand and pressure on resources.

As neighbourhood health develops, established primary care providers have an important role to play in helping local NHS teams respond to these challenges.

Patients at the heart of what we do

At Operose Health, our 700,000 patients are at the heart of what we do. Our purpose is to deliver great primary care by improving access, outcomes and patient experience.

We pride ourselves on delivering the best local primary care powered by at scale benefits. It’s our scale that enables our local teams to do what they do best - with focus on the needs of the communities they serve. Our scale enables us to do things others can’t. We take work away from local services when its better done away from the front door, supporting local GPs and practice teams through specialist teams in clinical governance, recruitment, HR, IT, technology, finance, estates, plus many more.

This gives local teams the freedom, the capacity and the support they need to focus exclusively on their patients and local priorities, including tackling health inequalities and improving patient experience.

Improving access to primary care

Improving access is central to our work. Across our practices, we provide more than 12,000 appointments in General Practice each day, alongside our urgent care service footprint

Our digital services allow patients to access care online, with requests reviewed by GP-led multidisciplinary teams, further powered by regional hubs.

Most simple care requests can be resolved through a single online consultation, which frees up clinicians to spend more time with patients who have more complex needs. Not all general practice enquiries are solved through an appointment – but where they are, we route to the right clinician at the right time.

Our colleagues understand their patients and local communities best

Our colleagues work with their patients and communities every day, so they understand local needs and priorities better than anyone. Our data and analytics tools give teams another way to build on that knowledge, helping them understand their performance, identify areas for improvement and respond to changing needs.

EZ Analytics brings together information on areas including QOF performance, medication reviews, patient feedback, incidents and complaints.

Regular reporting at practice and regional level helps teams identify where changes are needed and what additional support can make a difference.

Supporting multidisciplinary teams

We believe primary care works best when clinicians and other healthcare professionals work together and make the best use of the skills and experience available.

Our local teams have access to regional and central clinical and operational support, while we continue to invest in multidisciplinary teams within practices.

This can create more capacity for prevention, long-term condition management and proactive care, while allowing clinicians to focus on patients with the greatest needs. At scale offers resilience, support and capacity but never at the expense of local service need.

One of the huge benefits of being part of Operose Health

One of the huge benefits of being part of Operose Health is the ability to share ideas, learning and good practice across our services.

An approach that works well in one part of the country can help another team solve a problem locally, while our wider organisation can provide the support and expertise needed to put it into practice.

This also means local teams can benefit from the wider resources and experience available across Operose Health, helping us adopt new technology, try new ways of working and respond to changing demands.

We are incredibly proud that 99% of our services are rated ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), reflecting the focus our teams place on quality and patient care.

We currently care for more than 700,000 registered patients across 16 ICB areas, with more than 1,800 colleagues and over three million patient consultations each year.

Our ambition is to become the first primary care provider to care for more than one million patients, while continuing to focus on the needs of the communities we serve.

Why partner with Operose Health?

Neighbourhood health will require closer working across primary care, community services, local authorities, public health, voluntary organisations and other NHS partners and stakeholders.

Operose Health can support this through a combination of local experience, clinical expertise, data and wider operational support.

Our approach can help NHS partners with:

• Improving access to primary care
• Delivering services around local community needs
• Using data to identify opportunities for improvement
• Developing multidisciplinary teams
• Supporting prevention and long-term condition management
• Tackling health inequalities
• Providing clinical and operational support
• Maintaining a strong focus on quality and patient experience.

Looking ahead

Neighbourhood health might require new ways of working, but the focus remains on getting the basics right. It is about understanding local communities, responding to changing needs, preventing ill health and making the best use of available resources.

At Operose Health, we are committed to working with NHS partners to help deliver this, and to go above and beyond for the patients and communities we serve.

By combining strong local teams with the wider support available across Operose Health, we can help practices improve access, patient experience and outcomes while building more sustainable primary care.

If you would like to discuss how Operose Health could support your local priorities and neighbourhood health plans, please get in touch.