Vita Health Group provides services to the NHS under contract, and to corporate organisations and private individuals. For the NHS, Vita Health provides mental health services, physiotherapy and dermatology.
Vita Health Group was owned by Archimed, a French private equity firm, which sold it to Spire Healthcare in October 2023 for £74 million.
Entry Updated: January 2024
Strategy
Spire Healthcare acquired Vita Health Group in October 2023 for £74 million from Archimed, a private equity fund.
Vita Health began business as RehabWorks in 1987 as a provider of physical and mental health programmes in the UK. In 2015, the French investment company, Archimed, bought Rehabworks and Workplace Wellness, bringing them together as Vita Health Group.
Archimed is focused on European and North American small and middle-market businesses in the areas of biopharmaceutical products & services, life science tools, medical devices & technologies, diagnostics, health technologies & software and consumer health.
In 2017, Archimed added Crystal Palace Physio Group, a specialist physiotherapy service provider with a series of physiotherapy clinics in London, to the Vita Health Group.
The company has both a corporate business, providing wellbeing and physiotherapy services to businesses, and a number of contracts with NHS organisations, providing mental health services, particularly counselling services, and dermatology.
Financials
Vita Health Group was acquired by Spire Healthcare in October 2023 for £74 million. The sale was made by the French private equity company Archimed, which owned Vita Health Care via Kingfisher Topco and Kingfisher Bidco.
The most recent financial reports on Companies House are for the year to end December 2022. The operating company, Vita Health Group (Company No. 05002629) reported turnover of £63.1 million in 2022 (£44.5 million in 2021) and a loss after tax of £2.4 million (£707,145 loss in 2021).
Contracts
Vita Health has a number of contracts in the areas of mental health, physiotherapy, and dermatology.
NHS Contracts
Mental Health
Vita Health Group provides IAPT (Improving Access to Psychological Therapy) talking therapy services under NHS contracts in eight areas in England. The company is often known as VitaMinds in this area of work.
VitaMinds were awarded this contract at the start of 2023 and it begins in April 2023. The company takes over from Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, which took the decision not to re-tender for the contract in 2022. VitaMinds will provide the Let's Talk Wellbeing service, which primarily supports adults in the city and south of the county with anxiety disorders and depression.
Basildon, Brentwood, Billericay & Wickford
Vita Health won this contract in April 2019 for delivery of IAPT services in this area.
Bristol, North Somerset & South Gloucestershire
Vita Health won this 10 year contract in May 2019 and it began September 2019. The contract is the the provision of IAPT services and was valued at £77.6 million. At the time of the contract award campaigners expressed concerns over the ownership structure of the company.
This contract to provide IAPT services began May 2020. It was due to end April 2021, but appears to be ongoing (February 2023).
Leicester, Leicestershire & Rutland
This contract to provide IAPT services began in April 2021 and is due to end March 2026. The contract is worth £59.7 million.
This five year contract to provide IAPT services worth £24.1 million began in August 2022 and will end in July 2027.
West Essex: Harlow, Uttlesford & Epping Forest
This contract to provide IAPT services began in August 2021 and will end in July 2028. The contract is worth £21.9 million.
This contract for the provision of IAPT services began in April 2020 and was due to end in March 2022, however this appears to be still going (February 2023).
The contract was shared with Concern Group, Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, and Trent Psychological Therapy Services Ltd.
This contract is to provide adult psychological services in the Kent and Medway area. The contract started in April 2020 and was due to end March 2021, but contract still seems to be ongoing (February 2023).
This contract is shared with North Kent Mind, Addaction, Faversham Counselling Service, Concern Group.
Physical Health
Vita Health Group has contracts with the NHS across the UK to provide physiotherapy and MSK services. Contracts for services in the following areas:
Dermatology
Vita Health Group has a contract with the NHS to provide community dermatology services in Southport, Formby & South Sefton
Concerns
As with all private involvement in the NHS, there is the major concern that a company will be focused on profits rather than quality of care.
