The contract covers the design, construction and maintenance of facilities that bring together a wide range of primary healthcare services under one roof at a total of 6 dedicated sites.

Construction of two of the new centres will start immediately with that of the remaining 4 commencing during the remainder of 2004

These six centres represent the first phase of developments for Sandwell NHS LIFT - a public private partnership set up to deliver modern primary care facilities in the area.

The partners in Sandwell LIFT are:

• Oldbury and Smethwick Primary Care Trust (PCT)
• Wednesbury and West Bromwich PCT
• Rowley Regis and Tipton PCT
• Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council
• Sandwell Mental Health NHS and Social Care Trust
• Partnerships for Health
• ExcellCare Ltd

ExcellCare Director David Hartshorne said:

"This an important step for ExcellCare in that it marks the start of the delivery of our first NHS LIFT project. More importantly it is the beginning of a step change for the population in Sandwell in the way that primary healthcare will be delivered in the local communities"

Notes to Editors

1. ExcellCare Limited has enjoyed recent success in being announced as preferred partner for LIFT schemes in Manchester, Salford and Trafford, Leicester, Greater Nottingham, North Nottinghamshire and Southern Derbyshire.
2. Equion plc, a division of John Laing plc, is a specialist provider of facilities in the PFI (Private Finance Initiative) and PPP (Private Public Partnerships) markets with a long-term perspective and approach. Equion offers a combination of skills and experience, from planning and funding through to design, construction and operation. Equion is actively involved in the management of a wide range of police, education, health, defence and special purpose serviced accommodation projects including:
   • the new Norfolk & Norwich, and Queen Elizabeth (Greenwich) Hospitals
   • a radical restructuring of primary health care facilities in Manchester, Salford and Trafford
   • 17 new PFI police stations & facilities for the Greater Manchester Police Authority
   • South East London Police Stations for the Metropolitan Police
   • the Metropolitan Police Specialist Training Centre for the Metropolitan Police
   • the Ministry of Defence Main Building refurbishment in Whitehall
   • the Joint Services Command and Staff College at Shrivenham
   • Highlands Secondary School in Enfield
   • South East Essex College at Southend

3.       Bank of Scotland Corporate Banking’s Infrastructure Finance team is the UK's leading funder of PFI/PPP projects*. It has funded more than 100 PFI/PPP projects and has provided equity investment as part of an integrated funding package to more than 40 projects, equating to £10 billion of project value across the UK and Europe. It has participated in the funding of more than 8,000 acute hospital bed spaces across the UK and is a major investor in hospitals, with another two major projects currently at preferred bidder stage.

Bank of Scotland Corporate Banking also secured the Infrastructure Journal PPP Arranger of the Year Award in February 2003.

* Project Finance International Jan 2002 & 2003.