Posted on: 13 March 2020
This week’s leadership message is part of the 'We Work Together' podcast series. In this episode, Sarah Smith (our programme lead for improving population health) talks to Robin Tuddenham, CEO for Calderdale Council and Dr James Thomas, Chair of NHS Airedale, Wharfedale and Craven Clinical Commissioning Group. Robin and James are joint senior responsible officers for the Partnership’s Population Health programme. As well as the podcast's usual focus on leadership, there is discussion on the wider determinants of health such as housing, homelessness and climate emergency, and how we can do more to listen to our communities.
What else has been happening this week?
Budget 2020
The budget was announced on Wednesday. You can find supporting and related documents here.
On NHS spending, the government confirmed its commitment to £34 billion over the next five years, and in addition announced a further £6 billion in new funding over the course of this parliament.
The Chancellor also reaffirmed the government's intention to build 40 new hospitals, employ 50,000 more nurses and open up 50 million more GP appointments as set out in the Conservative party manifesto last year. No new funding was announced for social care.
In his Budget, the Chancellor also announced that an agreement has been reached between Government and West Yorkshire local authority leaders on a devolution deal for our region. This is a landmark moment for West Yorkshire. The deal will see the transfer of significant new powers and funding from central government to the West Yorkshire Combined Authority. As part of the deal, West Yorkshire will elect a metro mayor in May 2021 to work with councils and the combined authority to provide leadership in the use of these new powers for the benefit of local people.
This includes:
- Gainshare of £38 million per year for 30 years – this is new money from government to be invested in line with local priorities in West Yorkshire.
- A new 5-year integrated transport settlement with access into a new £4.2 billion local public transport fund – including Government commitment to work with the region to develop proposals for a modern, low-carbon mass transit system.
- Devolution of the Adult Education Budget, currently worth around £60 million.
- A new partnership between West Yorkshire and Innovate UK to support businesses to grow and deliver the jobs and technologies of the future.
Better Health and Wellbeing for Everyone
The partners collectively oversee a health and care budget of £5.5bn and serve 2.7 million people.Since its inception, the Partnership has been working on health inequalities, unwarranted care variation and better use of resources between NHS and local authority commissioners.
You can read more here about what this means for everyone or watch Rob Webster, CEO Lead for the Partnership and Cllr Tim Swift, Chair of our Partnership Board, in these films.
South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Integrated Care System (ICS) also unveiled its new Plan for the next five years by reducing the number of preventable deaths and illness that are caused by smoking, obesity and mental illness. The Plan outlines the key areas where £129 million of new indicative funding will be concentrated to address significant healthcare challenges and inequalities in the region - helping 1.5 million people to be healthier in 2020. Read more here.
Mental Health, Learning Disability and Autism Programme Board
The Mental Health, Learning Disabilities and Autism Programme Board met this week with a packed agenda reflecting the scale and scope of the Board’s work.
There was an update on the complex rehabilitation project, which aims to develop an understanding of the people currently cared for in long-term, restrictive rehabilitation inpatient settings and how they might be better supported closer to home and (where possible) in the community. The team’s report to the Board included insights from engagement carried out with people who access care around a number of themes and the insights from this work has helped the team to develop their ideas for next steps in their project. This potentially includes:
- Community complex rehab team and housing solution for people with psychosis (NHS England pilot)
- Specialist community team for women with personality disorders – to include a community alternative to admission
- Consider a blended female ward
- Re-profile current male complex rehab ward to active rehabilitation
- Develop model for long term quality of life locked community care
- Develop and prioritise capital spend
- Plan to ensure continuing service user and carer voices and co-production throughout future development/implementation work.
And a collective approach for:
- Purchasing and commissioning
- Service specifications and expectations
- Quality assurance and performance management
- Explore standardisation of decision making for complex rehab hospital placements.
West Yorkshire and Harrogate suicide reduction campaign
Reducing suicide by 10% across West Yorkshire and Harrogate by 2020/21 and achieving a 75% reduction in targeted areas by 2022 is one of our Partnership’s 10 big ambitions. It is highlighted in the Partnership’s draft Five Year Strategy and the Mental Health, Learning Disability and Autism Five Year Plan. This ambition supports and complements the work taking place in our six local places (Bradford district and Craven; Calderdale, Harrogate, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield). We have been working together to reduce suicide across West Yorkshire and Harrogate since 2016/17. The first project group brought together to develop a campaign aimed at all health and care staff took place on Wednesday. It was a great meeting with colleagues from all sectors, including public health, community and importantly people who had lived experienced of suicide. The next steps are to further develop the campaign brief to ensure it helps meets the primary objective of reducing suicide across our area.
Harnessing the Power of Communities Programme
The Harnessing the Power of Communities Programme (HPoC) continues to be active across the Partnership and is overseen by the HPoC Leadership Group which met on Tuesday.
The group includes voluntary and community representatives (VCS) from the six local places (Bradford district and Craven; Calderdale, Harrogate, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield).
Group members gave a warm welcome to Jo Baker as the newly appointed Programme Lead for HPoC. Jo will be taking up the reigns over the coming weeks for all the HPoC work streams.
Following Soo Nevison (Community Action Bradford) decision to step down from the role as programme senior responsible officer (SRO), the group appointed Hilary Thompson (formally Age UK) as the new SRO and Pip Goff (Forum Central) as Deputy.
As Hilary takes up the SRO role, she will be replaced as Kirklees rep by Val Johnson from Third Sector Leaders, Kirklees - a warm welcome to all and a huge thank you to Soo for all her hard work, dedication and commitment to the programme over the past two years as SRO.
The group also reviewed the progress of projects funded by the second year of the transformation funding which was allocated to support VCS capacity building and engagement. Projects are mainly focused on scoping the work of the VCS in specific programme areas and places, strengthening VCS engagement in primary care networks, developing sector leadership, and allocating grants to smaller community organisations.
There have also been three successful bids to the Local Workforce Action Board:
- Increasing knowledge in non-VCS system partners about the VCS, its nuances, benefits and limits (including myth busting and a jargon dictionary) £15,500
- Filling vacancies across hospitals using community knowledge and reach, targeting local unemployed people. £25,000
- Increased awareness of Health and Social Care roles in the VCS with particular respect to second career pathways, regardless of first career pathway. £15,000. The Integrated Volunteering Approaches Programme draft report was discussed. The final report will be available after Easter and looks at the role of volunteering in mental health settings. HPoC also submitted a bid last week for a further two years funding to develop this work. We will keep you updated. Members of the group also welcomed Fatima Khan-Shah, Programme Lead for Unpaid Carers, at the meeting to discuss programme work. Ruth Twiggins also updated colleagues on the Personalised Care Programme. The role of the VCS was recognised as central to both programmes and colleagues will continue to explore ways of collaborating to move forward.
Confirmation of the creation of a new clinical commissioning group (CCG) for Bradford district and Craven
NHS England/NHS Improvement (NHSE/I) has now formally approved Bradford district and Craven CCG’s application to create a single new clinical commissioning group (CCG) for Bradford district and Craven. NHSE/I have now issued a Grant of Merger which officially confirms approval to complete the transition to one new CCG. The new organisation will replace the existing three CCGs (NHS Airedale, Wharfedale and Craven CCG, Bradford City CCG and Bradford Districts CCG).
NHS Bradford District and Craven CCG will begin operating on Wednesday 1 April 2020 following the closure of the three former organisations.