Welcome to my fourth NHS Check Oldham Report, part of a series of reports that examine how national policies from the Government are affecting local health and care services in Oldham East and Saddleworth. These reports are informed by national and local statistics as well as data from other sources, such as patient experiences and … Read more
What could stop them? Ed Cox of IPPR cautioned in 2014 ‘we should be wary about getting too excited until the rhetoric become a reality’. The Taking Charge and Locality Plans could be viewed as a solid step forward in the devolution agenda, and the Voluntary & Community Sector-positive language is undoubtedly promising, however, at this stage it is still language. Alex … Read more
Recorded on 18th March 2016 at the Health and Social Care Summit
In my area of Lewisham, the CCG and local authority have agreed to be a devo pilot. It will result in better services, possibly new powers, more integration. What’s not to like? Devolution has real risks and I’d like to explore them here. And I am not convinced it’s needed at all. Integration, on the … Read more
Report on the event we held in Bristol on 8th January: This was the first of a series of meetings to discuss health policy in public. The aim is to explore and fill gaps in SHA and Labour Party health policies. This meeting explored Devolution and its stated aim – integration. In essence it looked … Read more
The penny is beginning to drop within the NHS world at last. The seemingly marginal cities and local government devolution bill, now in its Commons committee stage, has major implications for the NHS that have been little discussed and barely comprehended. It all began with Greater Manchester combined authority securing control of its £6bn NHS … Read more
We thought we had a political narrative on the shape of the NHS. David Cameron famously slams “pointless reorganisations” in 2011 but foolishly allows Andrew Lansley to run amok with his Health and Social Care Act in 2012. Jeremy Hunt is then brought in to steady the ship – Lansley having been deemed politically toxic … Read more
I spent a lot of time physically in Manchester, for one reason or another. As a ‘Northern power house’, it happens to be only two hours away from London Euston on the train. When news of the ‘People’s Republic of Manchester’ was breaking last year, I remember the criticism that came with it from the … Read more
This document is from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and outlines their intentions. The Greater Manchester Devolution Agreement was settled with Government in November 2014, building on Greater Manchester Strategy development. It includes powers over areas such as transport, planning and housing – and a new elected mayor. Ambition for £22 billion handed to Greater Manchester … Read more
The granting of power to health and social care agencies in Greater Manchester offers the chance to make a significant improvement to the life expectancy of the population of the conurbation. One of the aims of DevoManc is “To close the health inequalities gap within GM and between GM and the rest of the UK … Read more
The supper club at Whalley Range cricket club last night was good. There were about 30 people there from Clinical Commissioning groups, NHS Trusts, patient organisations, academia, trade unions etc. It was a good opportunity to network. The project manager for DevoManc, Warren Heppolette, was there and gave a 10 minute outline of the background … Read more
An MPU-Unite Statement SUMMARY What follows is an analysis of why we feel ‘DevoManc’ is the wrong solution to the correct question – how can we integrate health and social care locally under a national framework which would preserve the ‘risk-sharing’ that is essential in a national service? It is apparent that this agreement was … Read more