Lesley Strong, Acting Chief Executive at Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust, says she is 'disappointed' at the decision to award Richard Branson's Virgin Care a £126 million contract to run four of Kent's hospitals.

Her Trust currently runs the community hospitals on the Isle of Sheppey and at Sittingbourne, Dartford and Gravesend.

She said: “We are immensely proud of our services and of our highly-skilled staff. Their care makes a real difference to the quality of our patients’ lives, which is reflected in the positive feedback we receive.

“As the provider of adult community health services in north Kent for the past five years we have a proven track record of delivering high quality care for our patients, endorsed by our ‘good’ rating from the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

“Our bid received excellent or good scores in every area but we are disappointed it (the contract) has been awarded to another provider. We scored slightly higher than Virgin Care on quality but not on price. We have one of the lowest running costs of any NHS community provider in the country and the cost of our bid was within the budget set by the CCGs.

“We formed a strong alliance with Age UK, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust, Ellenor Hospice Care and primary care provider DMC to present a plan for the future to deliver good value-for-money services without reducing the quality of care for our patients.

“Our patients and dedicated staff continue to be our highest priority and during the next three months we will be working with Virgin Care to ensure a smooth transition.”

Ken Rogers, Lead Governor for Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust, added: “I am unhappy the contract has been awarded to what is a private contractor and would question how the Government’s intention to build local health services around patients is going to be carried out?

“Foundation Trusts have public governors elected by the local community to look after their interests. This is not the case for private contractors. This change is against all the values of public representation that I stand for.”

Richard Branson’s Virgin Care is to take over Sittingbourne Memorial Hospital and Sheppey Community Hospital as well as Livingstone Hospital in Dartford and Gravesham Hospital in Gravesend from April 1.

The contract was awarded by NHS Swale Clinical Commissioner Group and NHS Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley Clinical Commissioning Group (DGS CCG). The CCGs, led by local GPs, plan and pay for the bulk of the area’s health services.

Seven bids were considered and four made the shortlist. The contract is worth just over £18 million a year for the next seven years with the option to extend by a further three years.

The other bidders included Dartford and Gravesham Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs Darent Valley Hospital, and South Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust.

Virgin Care, part of Sir Richard Branson’s business empire, already holds nearly 330 NHS contracts. In 2012 it signed a £500 million, five-year contract to run community health services in Surrey, including seven community hospitals and inherited 2,500 staff.

Last year it won a £64 million five-year contract to run community child health services in Wiltshire which are currently provided by five separate NHS providers. That contract will also start in April.

Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust is one of the biggest providers of NHS community healthcare in the country with sites in Kent, London and East Sussex. It was created on April 1, 2011 with the merger of Eastern and Coastal Kent Community Services NHS Trust and West Kent Community Health. It employs 5,500 staff. It won Foundation status on March 1 last year and was rated ‘good’ by the Care Quality Commission in September 2014.