IN 2003 when Bevan Healthcare opened its specialist practice delivering health and social care to homeless people, asylum seekers and refugees throughout Bradford and district, it was tending to the needs of 1,400 patients.

Over the years demand has increased - mainly through economic circumstances and benefit changes - according to managing director, Gina Rowlands.

With more than 3,000 patients to care for, Bevan - named after politician Aneurin Bevan, who fought passionately for the NHS in Parliament in February 1948 - has re-located its former Sunbridge Road practice, breathing life into an empty building and laying down firm foundations for its future.

As a social enterprise, Bevan funded the move and refurbishment of the building with a loan from Social Investment Business and the council's Regeneration Bradford, which supports businesses to bring buildings back into use in the city centre.

Now situated within a former solicitors office in Piccadilly, the increased accommodation has allowed the creation of a wellbeing centre right in the heart of the city centre, improving access for patients.

Gina explains within the wellbeing centre they are working with organisations such as Simon on The Streets who are carrying outreach work engaging with the most entrenched homeless.

Alongside that, the new centre continues to offer a full range of GP services to its patients as part of a wider holistic service which supports people to find stable accommodation, get into education, training and employment - and move onto mainstream healthcare.

As well as core GP services, the practice is also pioneering a range of new projects, funded by Bradford City and Bradford Districts CCGs. Public health has also funded part of the intermediate care facility. The Bradford Bevan Pathway involves the practice teaming up with Pathway, a health charity, to create a new team to work with homeless people, vulnerable migrants and people from other excluded groups who are admitted to hospital.

Gina talks of the Bevan Pathway team at BRI, a nurse led team with support workers who can safely and effectively manage the discharge of homeless people who are in hospital.

Other services include Street Medicine, providing care at homeless drop-ins, soup kitchens and hostels including the Emanuel project, The Curry Circle and Sunbridge Mission.

Gina explains they deliver primary treatment for conditions such as skin and chest infections and wounds, but they may also pick up serious issues such as diabetes and epilepsy and they can sign-post those with alcohol and substance mis-use on to other support services through the partnerships organisations they work with such as drug and alcohol services.

Working with the statutory and voluntary sector, Bevan can also offer a range of services on site including a health trainer, contraception and sexual health service, health visitors, podiatry and mental health support, including Bradford Rape Crisis, the women's therapy team and a psychologist.

The practice also offers an Intermediate care facility. Jointly with Horton Housing Association, Bevan won funding to provide 14 self-contained units for homeless people to be discharged from hospital to – providing a health and social care facility for convalescence, support and rehabilitation.

Students from Leeds Medical School are also involved with the practice through training and education.

Gina says partnership work is imperative to the success in reducing health inequalities in the city and improving the care and support for the most vulnerable in our society.

The recent expansion is certainly indicative of a need within the city - something identified initially by Dr Les Goldman, a GP partner at Shipley Health Centre, while working one day a week at Bradford Day Shelter.

He tapped into the need after noticing a growing number of homeless and asylum seekers who weren't accessing healthcare for reasons such as language barriers; substance mis-use and mental health issues.

"A specialist service was set up through what was then Bradford PCTs (Bradford Primary Care Trusts)," says Gina.

In 2011 Bevan Healthcare became a social enterprise and has continued to grow and develop. "Our numbers have grown since September 2011. We had 1,400 patients, our current numbers are 3,200. We pick up people who live on the very fringes of society and provide them with some support, good healthcare and plug them into services and we also support asylum seekers to settle into this city," says Gina.