The value of long-term working relationships in the healthcare sector

The publication of the NHS Capital Guidance gives NHS estates teams greater confidence to plan long-term investment in support of the 10-Year Health Plan. Our relationship with healthcare partners in Leicester demonstrates the benefits this approach can deliver and provides a strong model for the future of healthcare infrastructure.

Lessons from Leicester

Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust providing services across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, reflect on a series of healthcare estate investments which demonstrates how sustained collaboration can turn complex capital programmes into better outcomes for patients, staff and local communities.

The area’s current programme is not simply a sequence of isolated schemes; it is part of a longer-term approach to modernising services, improving patient flow and preparing the ground for future hospital transformation.

A programme built around continuity

The significance for Tilbury Douglas is in the way these projects connect. Since 2017, the partnership has supported a steady pipeline of work across Leicester’s healthcare estate, adding value to clinical teams, designers, contractors and clinical stakeholders, building shared knowledge over time rather than starting from scratch on every project. This resulted in our client satisfaction recorded at 98.5% for 2025/26.

Why long-term working matters

Long-term working creates benefits which are particularly valuable in live healthcare environments. Teams that remain engaged across multiple schemes understand the specific operational pressures of the NHS trusts, improve decision-making and support more realistic planning, sequencing and delivery across busy clinical sites, maintaining safe access for patients, staff and emergency services.

Chris Houlder, Framework Manager at Tilbury Douglas, reflects: “Since 2017, the real value of the partnership has been the knowledge that builds up across a programme. On live healthcare sites, continuity means teams understand the estate, the clinical pressures and the importance of keeping services running safely. That shared experience helps us plan better, engage earlier with stakeholders and deliver improvements that genuinely support patients and staff.”

Benefits for patients and staff

For staff, long-term investment can provide better working environments, improved clinical support spaces and more resilient infrastructure. In healthcare, these factors are not secondary considerations. They influence recruitment, retention, productivity and the ability of teams to deliver high-quality care consistently.

Vijay Patel, Senior Capital Projects & Property Manager at Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust, added: “Our estates programme is about more than buildings. It is about creating facilities that help clinical teams deliver safe, efficient and compassionate care for our communities. By working with partners over the long term, we can make better decisions, minimise disruption to live services and ensure each project contributes to a wider plan for improving healthcare across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.”

From individual schemes to system-wide improvement

That continuity can also strengthen value for money. Repeat collaboration enables lessons learned on one scheme to inform the next, from phasing and logistics to stakeholder engagement, procurement planning and post-occupancy feedback. In a constrained capital environment, reusing insight is as important as reusing designs, because it helps teams avoid preventable delays and make more confident decisions.

Sustainability and local value

There is also a local economic dimension. A visible pipeline of healthcare projects gives contractors, consultants and suppliers greater confidence to invest in skills, apprenticeships and local supply chains providing long-term capability in the construction and technical professions.

Seeking connections with health, employment and inclusive growth, in 2025 Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust achieved 88% Social Value Return on Investment and provided more than 230 hours of volunteering through the Tilbury Douglas Give a day of your time initiative and educational engagement with local schools, colleges and universities. The team delivering the estates programme has also contributed beyond the hospital boundary, including supporting the local Raising Health charity with £18,000 in donations.

A model for future healthcare delivery

The lesson from Leicester is clear: long-term working is not simply about commercial continuity. It is about creating the conditions for better understanding, better planning and better outcomes. A sustained pipeline, aligned partners and a clear focus on patient benefit can help turn capital investment into lasting service improvement.