Our foundation application

Homerton achieved the top ranking of three stars in the 2001 and 2002 NHS Performance Ratings, making the hospital eligible to apply for first wave Foundation Hospital status. We have subsequently also achieved 3 stars in the 2003, 2004 and 2005 performance ratings.

In 2003, we undertook a public consultation on our plans for Foundation Trust status as we wanted to discuss these with our patients, staff and the public and to hear their views.

At our public Trust Board meeting on 1 December 2003, the Board of Homerton University Hospital NHS Trust formally agreed to forward a full application to the Department of Health to become a first wave Foundation Trust from April 2004.

We applied to become a Foundation Hospital to the Department of Health in February 2003. In May 2003 we were shortlisted as one of only 25 of the best performing trusts in England to go through to the next stage and in December 2003 the Secretary of State for Health forwarded our application to the Independent Regulator for NHS Foundation Trusts to consider the Trust for issue of a licence to operate as a Foundation Trust from April 2004. On 31st March 2004 the Independent Regulator for NHS Foundation Trusts granted us a licence to operate as a foundation hospital from 1 April 2004.

This licence ensures that the principal purpose of our organisation is to provide goods and services for the purposes of the health service in England, and we have a duty to do this effectively, efficiently and economically.

The key documents relating to our application are available on this site via the link at the bottom of this page and further information is available on the website of Monitor, the Independent Regulator of NHS Foundation Trusts.