We’re excited to share that our appointed architects Bluesky Architects and modular solutions partner Premier Modular, in collaboration have been shortlisted for the MMC 2026 Awards in the Healthcare Project of the Year (Secondary) category for the Isles of Scilly Hospital project.

As the appointed project delivery partner for this scheme by Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, we needed a team that would be up for the design and logistical challenges of this project.

This project presented unique design and logistical challenges to ship 29 modular units to the remote St Marys island. Collaborative design and teamwork between Bluesky, Premier Modular and the wider design team, ensured the seamless integration of the modular solution with the existing hospital building which has provided new inpatient wards, outpatient services, and care home facilities (12 ensuite bedrooms and support space).

We are delighted the team have been shortlisted for this award. Its is a project that will make a lasting impact on the Isles of Scilly communities.

Community 1st is proud to support the transformation of health and social care on the Isles of Scilly with the opening of the new Isles of Scilly Hospital Wing and a pioneering integrated model of care.

This state-of-the-art facility, opened in July on St Mary’s, is more than just a building, it’s a partnership between NHS, social care, and community teams delivering more care closer to home. Services like Hospital at Home, expanded diagnostics, remote consultations, and mental health support are improving access and outcomes for island residents.

Early results show a nearly 30% drop in emergency medevac fly-offs to the mainland, proving the power of community-focused care.

Ken Jones, General Manager at Community 1st, said: “We’re proud to play our part in this project and to work alongside our NHS and Social Care partners and local teams to support their vision for a new neighbourhood model of care.”

With the new care home wing opening soon, the Isles of Scilly Health and Care Partnership is leading the way in integrated, digitally enabled community care.

Equity Solutions is the private sector partner of Community 1^st, a successful PPP joint venture company that operates three LIFTco’s in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, Oldham and Sheffield.

LIFT continues to be a successful PPP model delivering health and social infrastructure assets and support services via this long-term partnership. Flexibility in the LIFT model is enabling these core primary care assets to evolve to continually meet the changing needs of the NHS and local communities, with no issues of backlog maintenance.

With the NHS 10-year plan focused on shifting more services into local neighbourhoods, successful PPP models like LIFT are essential. They can continue to provide existing well-established structures and teams to quickly support this vital national agenda. .

Demonstrating the successes of the LIFT model, Equity Solutions is a proud founding member of the new Neighbourhood Health Forum. The Forum was launched to be a collective voice for neighbourhood health delivery, bringing together over £7bn of health infrastructure and 1,000 community facilities experience under various PPP models. This unrivalled track record and expertise will be vital in helping the Government accelerate its plans for a neighbourhood health service.

Read more in the launch report at www.neighbourhoodhealthforum.com

Equity Solutions is a market leading socially responsible investor in joint venture partnerships that make a difference.

www.equitysolutions.org.uk

Community 1st is proud to celebrate the official opening of the new hospital wing at St Mary’s Community Hospital, a significant milestone in the ongoing transformation of health and care services for island residents.

This enhanced facility, delivered on behalf of Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, is part of a broader vision to improve care closer to home. With upgraded inpatient areas, new therapy spaces, and modern clinical environments, it’s a major step forward in meeting the unique needs of this remote community.

The success of this project reflects the close collaboration and partnership working between the local NHS leadership and service commissioning and delivery teams, our design and construction partners; Bluesky architects, Premier Modular, Mets and TMS, and the people of the Isles of Scilly, ensuring every detail supports better patient care, now and for years to come.

Ken Jones, General Manager said: “This project has been a remarkable demonstration of what’s possible when collaboration, commitment, and community come together.”

Read more here.

#HealthcareInfrastructure #IslesOfScilly #NHS #Community1st #IntegratedCare #RemoteCommunities #SocialValue #CommunityEngagement

The NHS’s new 10-year plan sets a bold direction: care that is local, preventative, integrated, and less reliant on hospitals.

Delivering on that vision takes more than policy. It takes the right infrastructure, built in the right places, through true partnership.

At Community 1st, we’re working closely with Integrated Care Systems (ICSs), local NHS providers, and primary care networks across Oldham, Sheffield, and Cornwall to help enable this transformation via the long-term partnership ‘LIFT’ model.

Through our 19 modern, flexible health centres, we’re already providing:

• Integrated clinical and community space – supporting collaboration between GPs, mental health, diagnostics, and social care
• Flexible infrastructure – adaptable layouts that evolve with new models of care, digital access, and mobile teams
• Sustainable estates management – reducing the operational burden on the NHS with long-term support and no backlog maintenance

Whether it’s co-designing new spaces with neighbourhood teams, enabling out-of-hospital pathways, or providing estates solutions that support service reconfiguration, we’re proud to be a local long-term delivery partner— helping to turn NHS ambitions into effective, on-the-ground improvements.

We previously explored the Power of Partnerships and how the LIFT model can support the NHS 10-year plan, read here. 

While the Government explores what a new PPP model might look like, the LIFT model remains active and, as Community 1st has demonstrated, continues to operate successfully.

It demonstrates how a well-managed partnership between the private and public sectors can provide long-term ‘Core’ assets to the NHS, free from backlog maintenance issues, with spaces that adapt and evolve over time.

Because delivering the NHS’s future requires buildings—and partnerships—that are practical, responsive, and built to last.

#NHSEstate #LIFT #PPP #Workingtogether