Dean presents health hub vision to MPs
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Published
03 November 2025
University of East London Dean Mr Robert Waterson has told MPs of the important contribution the University’s new Neighbourhood Health Hub can make to improving access to healthcare and engagement with local communities.
Mr Waterson, Executive Dean of the School of Health, Sport and Bioscience, was speaking at the House of Commons as part of an evidence session of an All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) investigation into access to primary care.
The session brought together national experts, policy makers and politicians to explore how to improve access to first-contact care across general practice, community pharmacy, dentistry and optometry.
Mr Waterson shared insights from UEL’s pioneering Neighbourhood Health Hub - the UK’s first university-led primary care prototype focused on accessible, preventative healthcare. The Hub represents a partnership between the University, the NHS and local authorities, designed to bring care closer to home through an integrated model that unites education, research and real-world clinical services.
Speaking after the event, Mr Waterson said:
It was a great privilege to speak at the APPG on Health and to be able to convey the significance of our Neighbourhood Health Hub.
I made the case that if we are to tackle the deep inequalities seen in places like east London, we must move care out of hospitals and into communities - embedding prevention, education and innovation at a neighbourhood level.
Our hub shows how universities can play a transformative role in strengthening the NHS workforce, expanding access, and turning prevention from a policy ambition into everyday practice.”
The APPG inquiry aims to develop policy recommendations to ensure equitable, efficient and sustainable access to primary care by 2035.
UEL’s participation demonstrates the University’s growing influence in shaping national health policy and its mission to address health and economic inequalities wherever they are found.
Through the Neighbourhood Health Hub and its expanding Stratford Health Campus, UEL is creating a scalable, community-based model for the future of healthcare - one that combines academic innovation with real impact on people’s lives.
At its heart, the Hub aims to:
- Help families build healthier lives from childhood.
- Support people to get back to work and stay active.
- Reduce health inequalities for everyone in the community.
Officially opened by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, the Rt Hon Wes Streeting MP, earlier this month, the Hub forms a key part of UEL’s Stratford Health Campus. The wider development includes 650 student bedrooms and new wellness and childcare facilities - a major investment designed to expand healthcare education, research and service delivery in east London