The NHS England/NHS Improvement Board Meeting in November 2020 set out the direction of travel for integrated care systems, which West Yorkshire and Harrogate Health and Care Partnership is also known as, and proposed options for legislative change to support this. Much of the vision set out in the document fits well with the approach we take in West Yorkshire and Harrogate and the future ambitions we have agreed in terms of how we want to work. There is a strong emphasis on provider collaboration, the role of partnership working at place level (Bradford District and Craven, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield) and close partnership with local councils. There also appears to be permissiveness and flexibility in the approach outlined which can be tailored to local system’s needs – which are welcomed.
Our Partnership proudly brings together the NHS, commissioners, providers, local authorities, the voluntary community sector enterprise and Healthwatch, at a place and a West Yorkshire and Harrogate level. All, including local political leaders and chairs of health and wellbeing boards, are influential members of our Partnership Board. Their collective strength provides greater opportunities to deliver on our ambitions, reducing future demand for healthcare by working to ensure that people are given the best start in life, with every chance to remain healthy and age well.
Our Five Year Plan, co-produced and published in March 2020, and our Improving Population Health Annual Report launched in December 2020, sets out the difference we are collectively making. Both were authored with an approach that sees the NHS plans as one chapter in a bigger story that encompasses the wider determinants of health and harnesses the contribution of all.
We were invited to submit our response to NHS England/NHS Improvement by Friday 8 January 2021.
There was also a response submitted by the following on behalf of the Partnership:
- The Joint Committee of Clinical Commissioning Groups
- West Yorkshire Association of Acute Trusts
- The Mental Health, Learning Disabilities and Autism Collaborative
- The West Yorkshire and Harrogate Clinical Forum
You can also read the response from The West Yorkshire Joint Health and Overview Scrutiny Committee, who scrutinise the work of the Partnership, as well as constructively challenge the work we do
Unpaid carers
White Paper Integration and Innovation: working together to improve health and social care for all - an easy read version
This is an easy read summary of the Integration and Innovation White Paper. You can find the full version at gov.uk
A white paper is a document made by the government. It sets out plans for things that they want to become laws.
The Integration and Innovation White Paper is about health and care services working closer together to make health and care better for everyone.
It is about making sure that everyone has the same chance of good health.
It sets out how Integrated Care Systems will work in the future. The plan is for the changes to start in July 2022.
What are Integrated Care Systems?
Integrated Care Systems (ICS) are the organisations that work together to provide health and social care in an area.
They are made up of the NHS, local councils, care providers, voluntary and community organisations and others.
They plan services so that everyone can have the best care possible in a way that is right for them.
The NHS Long Term Plan said that every area would have an Integrated Care System by April 2021.
Our ICS is West Yorkshire and Harrogate Health and Care Partnership.
It covers 6 local places - Bradford district and Craven, Calderdale, Harrogate, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield.
Many of the things that are in the white paper are things that we already do in West Yorkshire and Harrogate.
What does the White Paper say?
When the white paper becomes a law it will make it easier for health and care organisations to work together.
It will replace some laws that have made it difficult for this to happen in the past.
The main points in the white paper are that:
- All areas in England will have a statutory Integrated Care System (ICS). Statutory means it is required by law. They will plan and pay for hospitals and other NHS services.
- There will be a new duty for all healthcare, public health and social care services to work together.
- It will be easier for the NHS and local councils to work together to arrange new services.
How the white paper was written
NHS England and NHS Improvement spoke to lots of different people who use and work in services like local councils, voluntary organisations and others.
They ran 30 sessions and talked about what they need to do to improve the health of everyone in their communities.
They looked at work that has been done by areas that already have an ICS.
This included the work that we have done in West Yorkshire and Harrogate.
NHS England and NHS Improvement then asked people to look at the plans for the white paper. They held sessions with patient groups, charities and other organisations.
They used information from the NHS Long Term Plan and other plans.
They also used things that had been learned from the COVID-19 pandemic where organisations had to work together.
What does the White Paper mean for West Yorkshire and Harrogate? How will it affect the way we work?
As we already have an ICS in West Yorkshire, we will carry on with our good working arrangements and build on them for the future to meet the new requirements.
Our Partnership Board which started in 2019, includes all of our local places and partners.
It focusses on everyone working together to make health and care better for everyone who lives across our area. This will carry on.
Our hospitals and other providers such as mental health, learning disability and autism will continue to work well together so people can access good care close to where they live.
The important changes we made to the way we work during the COVID-19 pandemic will continue.
This is things like health, social care and the voluntary sector working together to support people who were shielding.
An important part of our work is to make sure that everyone has the same chance of good health and that we improve the lives of the poorest, the fastest.
This means we will look at all the other things that can affect a person’s health and wellbeing.
These are things like where they live, their home, whether they have a job, how much money they have and so on.
We are pleased that the white paper says that this is an important thing to do.
How the NHS, the council and health care providers work in our local areas will be left to them to arrange.
The ICS will work to support them to come together and improve outcomes for everyone.
We want to make sure that we make the right decisions about our health and care services so we aim to involve people with lived experience from the start.
Our work with Healthwatch and patient and public groups helps us to do this and will continue.
We will continue to work with voluntary and community organisations as they play an important role in our partnership.
The changes in the white paper will let us involve them in a way that is best for the people they work with.
What happens next?
The government will look at the white paper and decide the next steps.
The white paper could become a law later this year and areas will have to follow the new rules by April 2022, if it is agreed.
In the meantime we will continue to work with NHS England and NHS Improvement to understand the changes.
We have already started to review our ways of working to make sure that we are doing everything we should be.