NHS Confederation

Registration is now open! Don't miss out on #NHSConfedExpo. Join us on 11-12 June in Manchester for two days of collaboration, sharing insights, and developing innovative solutions to deliver high-quality care for all. Secure your pass today: https://bit.ly/3YUkNZt Follow NHS ConfedExpo for the latest updates.

🆕 We take a deep dive into the NHS planning guidance in the latest episode of #HealthOnTheLine ⬇

🚀 Exciting Opportunity Alert! 🚀 The NHS Race and Health Observatory is hiring! Would you like to work at the NHS Race and Health Observatory (RHO), a team who explore the ethnic inequalities in healthcare? Do you have experience in delivering policy related work which has led to change? If so, we want you to be part of our team! 🔍 Position: Senior Policy and Delivery Officer 💷 Salary: £32,284 per annum plus £4,000 London weighting if applicable 📍 Location: Agile working with London/Leeds base 🗓️ Closing Date: 2nd March 2025 👇 Apply Here #HealthEquity #JoinOurTeam #HealthcareJobs #DiversityAndInclusion

🆕Planning guidance: what’s the real story? On 30 January, NHS England published its operational planning guidance for 2025/26, outlining priority areas and objectives for the service. As the first planning guidance since the new government was elected, what does it tell us about the government’s ambitions for the NHS, and where does it leave NHS leaders and their teams as they face up to exacting efficiency targets and other pressures? Amid the policy detail, what does the guidance also tell us about the changing relationship between NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care? On the latest episode of our Health on the Line podcast, we put these questions to our guest Bill Morgan, former health policy adviser in Downing Street, who joins Matthew Taylor to share his perspective on developing health policy at the heart of government. 🗳️🏥 Plus, don’t miss out on our latest Leader in Six segment, this time with Andrew Moore, group chair of University Hospitals of Leicester and University Hospitals of Northampton.

We are delighted today to announce the two keynote speakers confirmed for our Mental Health Network annual conference and exhibition, which takes place on Wednesday 23 April in Leeds. Baroness Merron was appointed Minister for Patient Safety, Women's Health and Mental Health in July 2024. Her portfolio responsibilities also include life sciences, medical technology, and innovation. Baroness Merron is currently leading the progression of the Mental Health Bill through the House of Lords. MP for Lincoln between 1997 and 2010, she was Minister of State for Public Health. She also served in the last Labour Government as a Minister in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Cabinet Office, Department for International Development, and the Department for Transport, as well as a Senior Whip. Formerly Chief Executive of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, Gillian was elevated to the House of Lords in April 2021 and served on the Opposition front bench as Shadow Minister for Health and Social Care. Our second keynote speaker, Amanda Pritchard, needs no introduction – but we are keen to hear her perspectives on mental health services as chief executive of NHS England and can't wait to hear her speak to delegates. If you have not yet done so, be sure to reserve your place at the conference through the events page on our website. The event is open to senior leaders in mental health organisations from across the NHS, independent and third sectors, as well as leaders within systems and other NHS trusts.

Today we have published a new report on specialised commissioning, based on interviews and a national stakeholder meeting, co-developed by the NHS Confederation and Boehringer Ingelheim, commissioned and funded by Boehringer Ingelheim. The report includes case studies, lessons learned from pilots and challenges to look out for in April. The report; “A vision for specialised commissioning: lessons for future delegation”, aims to support ICBs with the move to delegated specialised commissioning in April. In April 2025, NHS England will delegate responsibility for the commissioning of 70 specialised services worth £14 billion to integrated care boards (ICBs). The aim is to better manage local population needs, tackle inequalities and integrate care pathways. This follows on from 2023 when we saw the delegation of pharmacy, optometry and dentistry services to ICBs. Between September and October, NHS Confederation and Boehringer Ingelheim held a national roundtable and series of interviews with a wide range of stakeholders. This report is based on those conversations. It looks at how systems and NHS England can ensure the success of delegation and seize the opportunities it offers for integration and patient care. The report also explores how specialised commissioning can support the move to prevention, and increase value for money.

Two days after our NHS Confederation report proposed develop a new model to unlock private investment, the NHS England CEO says publicly "we must consider private capital investment in the NHS." It is welcome to see NHS England is heeding the call we have already made on behalf of NHS leaders to consider bridging the health service’s capital investment hole by looking at whether co-investment could help regenerate some of the NHS's vast estate and infrastructure. This isn't about bringing back old PFI, but building a new model fit for the future to help fix the NHS and offer better value for taxpayers' money. https://lnkd.in/ehWtgPGC

Lovely visit this week to the Hillingdon Cove, a drop-in crisis support centre in North West London run by our third-sector members Hestia Charity. Hestia delivers services across London and the surrounding regions, as well as campaigning and advocating nationally on the issues that affect the people they work with, who include victims of modern slavery and women and children who have experienced domestic abuse. The centre itself offers a safe, welcoming space and a listening ear, a hot drink and a snack, 1-to-1 non-clinical support to help to find the best path forward, support to develop a plan for the next day, as well as longer term plans which could involve contact with statutory services. Residents can turn up any time during opening hours with no appointment needed, Monday to Sunday, 365 days a year. They also run regular activities to support residents with their mental health and sense of connectedness. Our Mental Health Network director Rebecca Gray and team were able to meet senior leaders, centre staff, and also volunteers, some of who are former users of the service, who are now helping to improve care for others. While we heard how effectively they are working with local mental health trusts – by providing an alternative to attendance at A&E and reducing the need for onward referrals, it was clear that the commissioning environment remains challenging and that more needs to be done to ensure a joined-up way of supporting, sustaining and empowering VCSE providers. Many thanks to the Hestia team for their very warm welcome.

The “broken” NHS capital regime is preventing the health service from spending funding to repair its estates, buy vital equipment and build new facilities. That is one of the key messages from our new report on capital efficiency, which sets out how the capital regime can be improved to deliver on the government’s missions for health and economic growth. Local NHS leaders have told the NHS Confederation that the capital approvals processes from local trust and integrated care board (ICB), up through NHS England, the Department of Health and Social Care and the Treasury, is too slow as there are too many duplicative stages, creating delay and adding cost. Our report recommends reducing the number of approval stages projects have to go through – currently at least 19 – as well as giving local health systems greater autonomy over their spending. For example, NHS England and the government both have to approve any investments over £50 million, but the NHS Confederation believes this should be increased to £100 million, allowing projects such as new hospitals, new scanners and artificial intelligence to progress more quickly. Our report also recommends that ICBs should be allowed to raise additional investment away from government allocations including via private means, which is not allowed at present. Our chief executive Matthew Taylor says treating patients in crumbling buildings and with out-of-date equipment is neither safe nor good for productivity. “But what money there is, is too often held back by red tape – creating delay and cost, undermining taxpayers’ value for money.” Our new report sets out 16 measures that can help the NHS make the most effective use of the capital funding it already has, including the extra investment promised by the government in the last Budget. Read it now. Link in comments ⬇️

📢 New programme alert! We are pleased to announce the launch of the COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) Health Inequalities Improvement Programme in partnership with Sanofi . This initiative aims to support Integrated Care Board leaders and local health authorities in tackling significant health disparities faced by COPD patients in underserved communities. It will assist organisations in identifying community needs and developing effective support strategies. Together, we aim to foster equity in healthcare, ensuring that all patients receive the comprehensive respiratory care they deserve. Find out more. 👇 #COPD #HealthInequalities #NHSLeadership #IntegratedCare #RespiratoryHealth #HealthDisparities #CommunityHealth