A vibrant, community-led hub has officially launched at the Akerman Health Centre in South London, creating an exciting focal point for local connection and wellbeing.
In June 2026, the hub hosted its first major community event, bringing together a dynamic mix of local services and organisations, including GP practices, London Sport, gardening groups, and boxing clubs. The event provided a lively and welcoming space where residents could explore available support, discover new opportunities, and build stronger links with the initiatives shaping their local area.
The launch event drew an impressive turnout of over 350 people, attracting a diverse range of local residents and patients from across the borough, all eager to engage, connect, and make the most of what their community has to offer.
The introduction of the community hub comes at a pivotal time across the NHS and the drive to improve health outcomes. The government has set out an ambitious vision to build an NHS fit for the future, centred on delivering a neighbourhood health service that brings together both clinical care and community-based support under one roof.
NHS LIFT facilities are typically located in areas of high healthcare need, across local communities. These facilities are more than just healthcare settings, they serve as safe, local spaces where staff, patients, and residents can connect, access support, and find information that may not otherwise be readily available.
The pilot will run through to early August 2026, offering community groups free use of space to deliver activities to local residents.
If you are a community provider or the voluntary sector in South London and are interested in hosting an event at the Akerman Health Centre or in an NHS LIFT facility, please get in touch to explore opportunities.
This new community hub reflects exactly the kind of neighbourhood-based approach we want to see more of across South London. By working in partnership with local groups and residents, we’re making it easier for people to access both healthcare and wider support services in a way that feels welcoming, inclusive and joined-up. Initiatives like this are key to improving outcomes and reducing health inequalities across our communities
The launch of the community hub at Akerman Health Centre is a fantastic example of how NHS LIFT buildings can evolve to meet the wider needs of the communities they serve. By bringing together local organisations, activities and support in one accessible space, we are helping to create stronger, more connected neighbourhoods, and ensuring our facilities play a vital role in improving health and wellbeing beyond traditional healthcare.
There is a lot of hurt out there, but if no one has a place to come together to talk through their pain, their grief, their trauma then people go back into their homes to suffer on their own. Community centres offer individuals to form a collective response to the needs of their communities.
We are proud to support the launch of the Akerman community hub which shows how much can be achieved by taking a thriving health centre and opening it up to an even wider range of organisations to support the wellbeing of local residents. As the NHS takes important steps towards more neighbourhood-based care, the Akerman project underlines the strength of the NHS LIFT estate in continuing to meet the changing needs of local communities
To read more about the community day Akerman Community Hub Launch Marks a New Chapter for Neighbourhood Health in Brixton – Community Health Partnerships
To find out more about the initiative: DBU061-CHP-A2-Community-Boards-Concepts-V3.pdf
Get support from CHP
Get in touch with your CHP Regional Director, Strategic Estates Productivity Leads, and regional Property and Operations teams to find out how they can support clinical services at CHP buildings providing high-quality, modern, core NHS facilities for patients in their local neighbourhoods.
