The new chief executive of Swindon primary care trust is one of the first to take on a joint local authority role that includes housing.

The new chief executive of Swindon primary care trust is one of the first to take on a joint local authority role that includes housing.

Caroline Fowles will also be group director of housing, communities and adult social care at Swindon borough council.

Joint appointments at this level are rare and this is believed to be unique because it includes housing.

The role was road-tested for a year by former PCT chief executive Jan Stubbings, who was seconded into the council post when there was a vacancy.

Swindon council chief executive Gavin Jones said it had 'worked extremely well'. 'We started to have shared conversations and identify opportunities,' he said. 'And over the last year we have succeeded in breaking down some of the cultural barriers between the organisations.'

Ms Fowles, who was previously chief executive of Cheltenham and Tewkesbury PCT, said the role was a strategic post that would allow her to take an overview of how services could gel better.

It was an opportunity to look at how to commission and provide services differently, she said. One priority this year would be looking at more co-location of staff.

Ms Fowles also highlighted enormous potential for tackling health issues by working more closely with neighbourhood management and housing services.

'Swindon's housing stock means I can access just under 11,000 tenants,' she said.

This was a way to promote public health messages and collect health data and feedback to inform service development.

Mr Jones said the test of the role was how the organisations achieve the outcomes of Swindon's local area agreement.

'The annual health check for next year and the council's corporate assessment will be a good indicator of whether this is delivering added value,' he added.

NHS Confederation deputy policy director Jo Webber said the housing portfolio made the role unusual. 'Putting housing in there could be a really powerful way of getting the public health and well-being agenda under way.'

She said the joint appointment was part of a move towards the creation of a care trust that works across both social care and health.