• University Hospitals Plymouth Trust revises financial forecast
  • Trust set to miss its financial plan by around £20m
  • Comes as several other organisations in Devon fail to hit their plans

An acute trust has increased its forecast deficit by around £20m, amid a worsening of its county’s overall finances.

According to figures within its latest board report, University Hospitals Plymouth Trust is forecasting an underlying deficit of around £42m in 2019-20, compared to its “control total” deficit target of £22.5m. This performance measure excludes central funding, such as provider sustainability funding.

It comes a month after Devon Clinical Commissioning Group increased its own planned deficit by £40m and warned of an “increasing expectation” that the county’s providers were at risk of missing their control totals.

UHP, which has an annual income of around £545m, has been struggling to deliver its savings programme, which — along with “other budget pressures” — poses the main problem to its financial plan, according to its November board papers.

As of October 2019, the trust has delivered £10m of savings, while its target for the year is £25.6m.

Sarah Brampton, director of finance for UHP, said the forecast had changed ”on the basis of factoring in an under-delivery of challenging cost improvement programmes (£10m) and net in-year cost pressures of (£12m)”. 

Last month, another Devon provider, Torbay and South Devon Foundation Trust, revised its forecast deficit from £3.8m to £18.8m. 

A spokesman said: “The main factors behind this change of forecast are underdelivery of challenging cost improvement programmes (£10.5m) and net in-year cost pressures (£4.5m).”

The forecast changes mean the Devon Sustainability and Transformation Partnership, which has long been one of the most financially challenged in the country, is now forecasting to finish the year with a deficit of around £145m against a planned deficit of £69m.

According to its latest board papers, the Royal Devon and Exeter FT is also at risk of missing its financial plan.

This is likely to happen unless the trust receives £5m in global digital exemplar funding and “flexibility in the current rules around the treatment of profit on disposal in line with original assumptions”.

Northern Devon Healthcare Trust and Devon Partnership Trust remain on track to achieve their plans.

 

HSJ Provider Summit

The HSJ Provider Summit, taking place at the Crowne Plaza, Stratford-upon-Avon from 22-23 April 2020, unites 120+ board members from provider trusts across the country with those shaping national policy, to share best-in-class initiatives in delivering cost-effective and high-quality care for their local populations.

Held under the Chatham House Rule, attendees will co-develop solutions to their local challenges with colleagues from across the country. The summit is free to attend for board-level NHS leaders.

 

Source

Board papers

Source date

December 2019

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