Overview and strategy

North Cheshire and Mersey NHS Foundation Trust (NCM) serves more than one million residents across the Halton and Warrington boroughs and the wider North West region.

Bringing together community and out-of-hospital services (formerly provided by Bridgewater Community Healthcare) with inpatient and elective care (formerly Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals) we provide services at two hospital sites and more than 70 community hubs and facilities.

Warrington Hospital provides emergency care, general medicine, surgery, cardiac care, stroke care, cancer care, maternity, paediatrics, and support services like physiotherapy, pathology, and pharmacy.

Halton Hospital in Runcorn specialises in elective and diagnostic care. It includes the Captain Sir Tom Moore Building and Nightingale Building, offering services including general surgery, urology, cancer care, chemotherapy, and outpatient care. The site is also home to the Delamere Macmillan Unit, Halton Clinical Research Unit, and Runcorn Urgent Treatment Centre.

The hospital sites are around 10 miles apart and are close to the north west motorway network, offering outpatient clinics and diagnostic services as well as inpatient care.

Community-based services are provided from patients' homes, clinics and health centres. Mobile facilities and virtual appointment options aim to improve access to car and reduce health inequalities.

Read more about our hospital sites and community locations.

Our hospital sites are smoke free and smoking is not allowed on any part of the grounds or buildings.

Services are delivered by our workforce of 6,500 staff, many of whom live in the communities we serve.

We strive to be an equal, diverse and inclusive employer, which is recognised as a pioneer in its equality, diversity and inclusion work. We support a flexible first approach and welcome applications from those who like to work flexibly.

The Trust is proud to have achieved numerous external accreditations and is working towards fully embedding the Anti-Racist Organisation Framework, recognising the importance of anti-racism in all that we do.

Foundation trust 

We have held foundation trust status since 2008 providing greater opportunities for people, patients and staff who have a genuine interest in healthcare services to have more of a say about the way in which they are provided. 

Foundation trust status is only awarded to NHS Trusts who have shown they demonstrate the highest clinical standards, quality leadership and a great record of patient care and safety. 

As an NHS foundation trust we have a Council of Governors made up of elected public and staff governors and partner governors representing local organisations that we work closely with. A foundation trust invites people to become public members (service users, carers, local people) and staff members who have the opportunity to elect governors to the council and to be involved in the activities of the Trust.

Our Constitution sets out details of how we operate as a foundation trust including the Council of Governors and membership constituencies.

Working with partners

The Trust is part of the Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care System which is known as NHS Cheshire and Merseyside. Within this context Warrington and Halton operate as place-based partnerships which aim to develop a plan to address the broader health, public health and social care needs of the local population and design the delivery of integrated services to address these.

These partnerships are known respectively as ‘Warrington Together’ and ‘One Halton’ and involve the NHS, local authorities, community and voluntary organisations plus local residents and people who use health and social care services.