Community health services are being relaunched under a new name to improve patient care.
The rebranded services will operate as Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire (BSW) Community Health from April 1, 2026.
This marks the next phase in a wider plan to deliver more joined-up care closer to home and reduce avoidable hospital admissions.
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The changes apply to Swindon’s NHS community health services, currently delivered by HCRG Care Group, and aim to make care more accessible, easier to understand, and focused on prevention.
Val Scrase, regional director for Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire, HCRG Care Group, said: “Bringing community health services together across Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire in 2025 was an important step forward in helping people stay well for longer and enabling more care to be delivered safely in the community.
“This next phase will build on that strong foundation.
“It strengthens our ability to help people stay healthy and live well, while making care easier to access and better to experience.
“It also supports the NHS’s ambition to move more care closer to home and prevent ill health, while easing the pressure.”
Health services across the region are already under strain, with inpatient, outpatient, and A&E care costs totalling £340 million per year and projected to rise to £410 million by 2040.
NHS England data shows that people living in the most deprived areas of England are nearly three times more likely to be admitted to hospital for conditions that could potentially have been treated or managed earlier in the community.
Community input has played a key role in shaping the changes, with feedback highlighting a lack of awareness about available services and how to access them.
One of the main improvements is a single point of contact for community health services in Swindon and Wiltshire, available on 0300 247 0200, online, or in writing.
Residents will no longer need to go through a GP or hospital referral to access care.
A new team of Community Health Navigators will assess needs and direct people to the right level of support.
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Neighbourhood care teams will bring together professionals from different disciplines to deliver holistic, proactive care focused on both physical and mental health.
Ms Scrase said: “We’ve reached this point thanks to the invaluable support of our local communities, the voluntary sector and our NHS and local authority partners.
“By working together, we’re creating a community health service that’s designed around people’s lives and capable of supporting healthier communities for years to come.”
