Agenda item

Report of Gail Quinton, Executive Director of People

The Board received a report of Gail Quinton, Executive Director of People which set out the background and an overview of the proposed Coventry and Warwickshire Health and Wellbeing Board Concordat and the opportunities that this provided for Coventry to work in alignment with Warwickshire to deliver the Coventry and Warwickshire Sustainability and Transformation Plan. A copy of the draft concordat was attached at an appendix to the report.

The report indicated that the health and care system locally and nationally was operating in an increasingly challenging context in light of rising patient expectations; an aging population; the increasing prevalence of chronic disease; and reducing resources. The development of the Sustainability and Transformation Plan in Coventry and Warwickshire provided an opportunity for collaboration to tackle these challenges. 

As the West Midlands Combined Authority gathered momentum there were both opportunities and expectation that organisations would become more aligned, increasingly working on a systems approach. Consequently there were advantages for Coventry and Warwickshire Health and Wellbeing becoming more closely aligned, so the proposed concordat had been developed.

The draft concordat set out the principles for joint working between the two Health and Wellbeing Boards with an emphasis on delivery of the Sustainability and Transformation Plan. It had the dual purpose of enabling people to pursue happy, healthy lives putting people and communities at the heart of everything, whilst transforming services and making significant savings.

The Board were informed that once they had agreed to the concordat, it was proposed to hold a joint event to formally launch and sign the concordat. A programme of more aligned working would also be developed but with both Boards operating within their existing governance arrangements.

The Board discussed the wording and the principles of the concordat, in particular whether the wording of the draft principle ‘We will only take decisions that impact on other parts of the system after consultation’ best reflected the desired aim of inclusivity and agreement between partners. It was suggested it would be more appropriate to use ‘We will consider the impact of our decisions on other parts of the system after consultation’.

Members expressed support for the joint concordat and the potential for sharing ideas and learning from best practice. There was also an acknowledgement of the differences between the two localities. The Board discussed the decision to include reference to the £500m of savings to be made across Coventry and Warwickshire over the next five years. There was also a concern as to whether all the wording was appropriate if the document was to be shared with members of the public.

RESOLVED that:

(1) The Coventry and Warwickshire Health and Wellbeing Concordat be agreed.

(2) Having considered the wording and the principles of the concordat, the fourth principle be amended to read: ‘We will consider the impact of our decisions on other parts of the system after consultation’.

(3) Agreement be given to work in alliance with Warwickshire Health and Wellbeing Board to implement the principles of the Health and Wellbeing Concordat.

(4) Agreement be given to a meeting with Warwickshire Health and Wellbeing Board partners to formally sign off and progress the Concordat.