Opportunities and threats for LAs and their services

Alyson Morley

Senior Adviser (Health Transformation)

www.local.gov.uk

Summary

• Opportunities

• Threats

• Role of district councils

• Current support for public health transition

• LGA’s future support offer to system leaders

Why local government?

“Differences in access to health care matter, as do differences in lifestyle, but the key determinants of social inequalities in health lie in the circumstances in which people are born, grow, live, work and age”

Professor Sir Michael MarmotFair Society, Healthy Lives2010

Opportunities

• Focus on health, not just treating sickness• Whole population, place-based focus and strategic

overview of needs and resources• Wider determinants of health• Stronger local political and clinical leadership of

health agenda• Community engagement and voice of the ‘patient’• Integrated plans and commissioning• Localism – needs, plans, action

Contribution of district councils

• Closer to local people and customers – vital input to JSNA and communications on health reforms

• Provider/commissioners of key services – housing, leisure, planning, environmental health etc and employers

• Closer correlation with clinical commissioning groups – possibly

• District councils are already engaged and committed to health and wellbeing – they have a strong base on which to build

Threats to all councils• Commitment – are LAs up for the challenge?• Capacity – are LAs up to the challenge?• Maintaining stability in transition• Will HWBs be effective?• Will CCGs engage with HWBs?• Centralising tendencies of Public Health

England, NHS Commissioning Board and Care Quality Commission

• Resources – PH and Healthwatch funding• Will systems, priorities and services change?

Making health reforms work at district level

• Working with county HWB– Contribution to joint strategic needs assessment– Contribution to joint health and wellbeing strategy– Public health presence at district level

• Working with other districts• Working with CCG• Working with Healthwatch• Role of Leader and Portfolio holder for health

and wellbeing

Current support for health reform – Health and wellbeing boards

Principles of support offer available at national and regional level

1. Alignment with other activities2. No duplication – builds on existing regional

activity and adds value3. Making a difference – support is action and

outcome focused4. Sustainability – building in future needs and

support

National support for HWBs leadershipHWB leadership support offerNational• HWB development tool – to help evaluate progress• Knowledge Hub on HWBs – currently hosted by DH with 900+

members. Open to anyone: https://knowledgehub.local.gov.uk/.

• Disseminating evaluation and learningRegional • Simulation events• Chairs’ networks• Other activitiesBespoke support• Joint activity with NHS Leadership Academy to provide

support to 75 HWBsContact lorna.shaw@local.gov.uk for more information

National support – Healthwatch

• Local Healthwatch will be the consumer champion for public health, as well as health and social care services

• Crucial to have the patient and public voice in public health planning and provision

• Healthwatch is ‘lagging behind’ development of other partners – we need to keep a space for them

• National support programme in place

National support – public health

• JSNA guidance, principles and case studies

• From transition to transformation web resource

• National events on specific public health issues

• LGA annual public health conference – January 2013

Future sector-led support

• LGA Inform– Web-resource to benchmark with other councils– Capacity/demand for public health information

• System-wide peer challenge– Across all domains of the health reform agenda– With key partners– Demand from health systems– Testing the approach with all system leaders

Next steps

• What do you want LGA and other national organisations to provide?

• What is your current experience of support?

• What needs to improve?

alyson.morley@local.gov.uk