Healthcare partnership's future under threat

A healthcare partnership which helps to reduce hospital admissions is at risk.

Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust (TSDFT) works with Torbay Council to provide adult social care services.

However, council leader Dave Thomas told cabinet members the health trust was "giving serious consideration" to ending the partnership because of a "financial hole" of £30-40m due to the cost of providing the service.

TSDFT said it was "exploring options to ensure that the way we deliver care remains sustainable for the future", with a decision expected to be made in 2026.

Thomas told cabinet members on Tuesday the partnership had attracted national attention and supported the NHS 10-Year Plan to shift activity from hospital settings into communities.

Thomas said money from the health service had always been used to deliver adult social care as a way of reducing more costly admissions to hospital.

He told the BBC: "Within the Torbay system, it's somewhere between £30-£40m - a financial hole per annum within the budget and that's causing the kind of conversations that are required at the moment."

In March 2024, Torbay Council agreed to increased costs of £10.1m over a five-year period with concerns raised over a possible £36m deficit in adult social care.

On its website, TSDFT said it is "proud to be the first NHS Trust in England to integrate hospital and community care with social care".

It added: "We know first-hand the positive impact that working together in partnership with others has on our local population – giving everyone a brighter future."

In a statement, TSDFT said its integrated approach had delivered "significant benefits" for residents over many years by helping reduce "avoidable hospital admissions and supporting people to live well at home".

It said it faced "considerable financial pressures" and the discussions about the partnership's future were "ongoing and complex".

Joe Teape, chief executive of TSDFT, said: "We are committed to working with partners and regional and national colleagues to find a way forward that protects what matters most – safe, effective services for our communities."

Steve Darling, Torbay's Liberal Democrat MP, said news of the possible break-up was "incredibly disturbing".

He said he feared "prior mismanagement from the hospital meant they never got a grip on the cost of social care placements".

Darling said: "This means the current hospital management are being financially haunted by these decisions, trapped with expensive social care packages."

The MP called for a full consultation before any decision was made.

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