Anchor institution

How anchor institutions improve health

Health is shaped by much more than healthcare. Employment, education, housing, income, and the environment all play important roles in determining health and wellbeing.

NHS Fife is one of Fife’s largest employers and public organisations. As an anchor institution, we can help influence these wider determinants through the people we employ, the goods and services we buy, and the way we use our land and buildings. Working with partners across Fife, this helps create healthier communities and reduce inequalities.

Anchor institutions are pivotal in helping to meet Scotland’s ambition around a 'Wellbeing Economy'. The animation below illustrates NHS Scotland’s role as an anchor institution, the contribution to reducing inequalities and, supporting Community Wealth Building.

Our three anchor pillars

Employability

Creating opportunities for local people through recruitment, apprenticeships, volunteering, education, skills and fair work.

Procurement

Using our purchasing power to support local businesses, social enterprises and sustainable supply chains while maximising social value.

Land and assets

Making best use of our estate, facilities and community spaces to support health, wellbeing, sustainability and stronger communities.

Anchor institution activity in Fife

NHS Fife's workforce, spending power and assets create opportunities to support healthier communities and strengthen local economic wellbeing across Fife.

Community Wealth Building

This is a new approach to economic development. It aims to change how economies function so that:

more wealth is directed back to local economies
communities have more control over decision-making
local people receive more benefits from economic development

CWB can support Scotland’s national wellbeing economic objectives outlined in the National Strategy for Economic Transformation (NSET).

Anchor institutions like NHS Fife are a key mechanism to deliver Community Wealth Building (CWB). Together as anchor institutions we have a huge opportunity to redirect wealth back into their local economies.

Just think, in NHS Fife alone we

Employ around 8500 staff from the local area
Manage the health needs of a population of over 350,000
Oversee an annual budget in excess of £350m [non pay spend]
Manage an estate of 130 hectares.
Have a total revenue £1.078bn with capital £15.5m from 23-24 published accounts

This means that workers, residents and consumers would benefit more from the economic activity happening in their communities. The actions taken by Anchor Institutions contribute to the five pillars of CWB are:

Plural ownership of the economy
Making financial power work for local places
Fair employment and just labour markets
Progressive procurement of goods and services
Socially productive use of land and property

Workforce

As an anchor institution, NHS Fife employs more local people and provides fair stable work. We promote vacancies and opportunities on our Work with us pages.

Spend

Anchor institutions recognise the impact they can make locally by sourcing more goods and services within the surrounding area and developing the local supply chains to contribute to local economic growth. See NHS Fife's Procurement section.

Land and assets

As an anchor institution, local groups can use our land and buildings for community benefit. This is known as Fife's Community Asset register.

Environmental sustainability

Anchor institutions are conscious of their impact on the environment and are at pains to minimise this. Our work in this area is outlined in our Sustainability pages.

Partnerships

We can work alongside fellow anchor institutions such as Fife Council and Fife Health and Social Care Partnership to develop good practice and anchor approaches. We also have strong links with many third sector agencies and organisations.

Fife Voluntary Action
Fife Community Action Network
Fife Coast and Countryside trust
St Andrew's University
Fife College
Police Scotland