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What are the four key priorities for moving the neighbourhood model forward? Here Caroline Chill, Clinical Director for our Community and Care Home Programme, summarises the themes and priorities discussed at South West London’s recent ‘Building Better Neighbourhoods’ event.

This is the fourth blog in our Neighbourhood Health series, which have previously covered an introduction to Integrated Neighbourhood Teams (INTs), creating the conditions for INTs to flourish, and developing models for learning and evaluation.

On 5 November 2025, The South West London Training Hub hosted over 120 professionals from across south west London (SWL) to discuss “Integrated Neighbourhood Teams in Practice: Building Better Neighbourhoods.” Held in Surbiton and chaired by GPs Dr Charlotte Alexander and Dr Mohan Sekaram, the meeting brought together colleagues from general practice, community services, local authorities, and voluntary organisations to discuss the development of INTs and their role in improving population health, care and wellbeing.

A regional and local vision

The London model and the SWL Integrated Care Board (ICB) strategy and vision were outlined by Dr Agatha Nortley-Meshe (GP and NHS England London region medical director for primary care), Dr Mehreen Tahir, (Associate Medical Director, NHS England London), Dr Nicola Jones (GP and clinical lead for primary care at SWL ICB) and Lucie Waters (Director of Integration at SWL ICB). They advocated empowering frontline teams to shape person centred services around both individual and community needs. The event recognised and celebrated the progress already made in developing neighbourhood care through partnership working in SWL. For example, the INTs in Sutton which proactively identify and offer holistic support to people with long term conditions, and the close collaboration between General Practice and neighbourhood pharmacists in Croydon, which is redefining the image of community pharmacies in the local neighbourhood as places where proactive healthcare takes place, and not just reactive dispensing.

Breakout sessions and key themes

A series of breakout sessions explored topics such as commissioning, system leadership, community asset mobilisation, population health data, workforce development, social prescribing, and collaborative care models. These sessions offered attendees practical insights and examples of local innovation.

I led a session on commissioning and system leadership, facilitating a discussion about the importance of culture, relationships and trust along with effective use of data and aligned incentives, in developing effective neighbourhood working.

Other sessions showcased local initiatives, including community-led prevention, integrated care for older adults, and partnerships with voluntary sector organisations. These examples illustrated how neighbourhood working can help reduce fragmentation and deliver more personalised, locally relevant care. For example, Battersea’s community health workers work alongside other health and social care professionals to support residents' physical, mental, and social wellbeing by offering monthly household visits to address health concerns, helping residents to access services, and promoting healthy living. The workers have developed strong links with local voluntary services by attending monthly community breakfasts and other community events, building trust and increasing their understanding of the local population needs.

Next steps

To advance the neighbourhood model, several priorities were identified:

I was struck by the commitment and determination of organisations, clinicians and professionals to work together to deliver the vision of neighbourhood working in SWL, to deliver population based, proactive and preventative care.

Dr Alexander said: “The level of energy and engagement at this fully booked first event really stood out. It’s clear this is just the start, and with the right collaboration, integrated neighbourhood working can bring lasting change for our communities in south west London.  At the South West London Training Hub, we’re committed to turning ideas into action, where learning leads to collaboration, and collaboration drives leadership. We’re already looking forward to the next event.”

At the Health Innovation Network South London, we’re looking forward to continuing to strengthen neighbourhood working to enable care to be delivered closer to home for  south London populations.