Cheshire East Shadow Health and Wellbeing Board
Our Vision
Cheshire East Health & Wellbeing Board will work
together to make a positive difference to people’s lives through a
partnership that understands and responds to the needs of the
population now and in the future. The board will do this
by:
- Engaging effectively with the public.
- Enabling people to be happier, healthier, and independent for
longer.
- Supporting people to take personal responsibility and make good
lifestyle choices.
- Achieving evidence-based outcomes within a holistic vision of
health and wellbeing.
Local authorities were invited to become ‘early implementer’
sites for the development of Health and Wellbeing Boards in January
2011. Cheshire East was successful in achieving ‘early implementer’
status in March 2011 and is part of a national early implementer
network that is supporting local areas in the development of their
Boards.
The Health and Wellbeing Board is expected to
provide vision and a coordinated drive to address the health and
wellbeing needs of the local population Cheshire East to reduce
unacceptable and avoidable variations in health and healthcare.
Health and Wellbeing Boards are intended to
act as the ‘glue’ between the NHS bodies (Clinical Commissioning
Groups, Providers, NHS Commissioning Board and others) local
authorities and other agencies (Police, Fire, 3rd Sector) and give
local people greater say in how care is provided - thereby
improving local democratic accountability for local decisions about
commissioned services.
Our Principles
- Equality and fairness – Provision of services
should meet need, reduce health outcome variations, and be targeted
to areas which need them the most.
- Accessibility – services should be accessible
to all, with factors including geography, opening hours and access
for disabled people and other vulnerable groups considered.
- Integration – To jointly commission services
that fit around the needs of residents and patients, encouraging
providers to collaborate to create integrated services where
appropriate. This will maximise the benefits of delivery through
the Health and Wellbeing Board.
- Quality – The strategy should be based on
sound evidence and reasoning, and focus on quality, within our
resources
- Sustainability – Services
should be developed and delivered considering environmental
sustainability and financial viability.
What will the Board do?
- Challenge: The big pressures on public
services include rising demand, rising health treatment costs - and
the state of public finances.
- Plan services: With increasing pressures on
public finances, it will be the job of the board to work together
to plan services that meet the needs of local people, while
achieving best value for money.
- Joint Strategic Needs
Assessments (JSNA): They will look at the evidence of
what works best to help target plans and resources. They will be
responsible for making sure that the local JSNA is written and that
plans for services are based on this (the JSNA is a piece of
research that every local authority has to undertake, which ‘tells
the story’ of local people’s needs). Feedback from the Cheshire East Health and
Wellbeing consultation.
- Joint Health & Wellbeing Strategy: They
will be responsible for developing a local ‘Joint Health and
Wellbeing Strategy’, based on their JSNA. The Board will need to
make sure that local services are in line with this Strategy.
The Joint Health
and Wellbeing strategy (PDF, 115KB) is currently awaiting
approval and will go to the Health and Wellbeing Board on 27th
November and to Cabinet on 12th December.
- Look at the big picture: The Board will look
at people's health and social care needs together, as well as
taking into account the bigger picture - things like transport,
housing, jobs and leisure - so that services help people stay
healthy and independent.
What will we do locally? All of the above and:
Cheshire East Health & Wellbeing Board will
work together to make a positive difference to people’s lives
through a partnership that understands and responds to the needs of
the population now and in the future. The board will do this
by:
- Engaging effectively with the public.
- Enabling people to be happier, healthier, and independent for
longer.
- Supporting people to take personal responsibility and make good
lifestyle choices.
- Achieving evidence-based outcomes within a holistic vision of
health and wellbeing.
Why are we doing it?
The idea for Health and Wellbeing Boards came
from the Health and Social Care Act (2012). The Act is part of the
Government's plans to change health and social care services and
the way they are commissioned. Some of the Bill’s key plans
included give clinicians, such as GP’s, responsibility for
commissioning health services, and strengthening ‘local
accountability’ – for which Health and Wellbeing Boards
will have a crucial role and responsibility.
When is it happening?
Cheshire East set up their shadow Health & Wellbeing Board
in September 2011 and the permanent Board will be established by
April 2013. The Board meets every two months.
How will we take on board what the community says?
- We will set up Healthwatch in Cheshire East. For more
information please see our Current
Consultations.
- We will organise events to engage with you. For further
information see the Forthcoming Events table
below:
Shadow Health and Wellbeing Board Documents
Further Details
Julie North
Senior Democratic Services Officer
Cheshire East Council
Westfields
Middlewich Road
Sandbach
CW11 1HZ
Tel - 01270 686460
e-mail - julie.north@cheshireeast.gov.uk
