02/04/2025
Bevan Brittan provides high quality, comprehensive advice to the NHS, independent healthcare sector and local authorities. This update contains brief details of recent Government publications, legislation, cases and other developments relevant to those involved in health and social care work, both in the NHS, independent sector and local authorities which have been published in the last month.
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Bevan Brittan Free Training Events
There is no charge for any of the events listed below
Webinars
These are internal hour long lunch time training sessions. You can sign up to watch the training sessions remotely via our webinar facility. Please contact Claire Bentley.
Case Law Update – Mental Capacity Act 2005 12.30pm - 1.30pm - 3 April 2025
Join us for this session with Rhys Hadden from Serjeants’ Inn Chambers to consider:
- Key case law and important updates from the past 12 months
- Any updates on the revisions to the Code of Practice to the Mental Capacity Act 2005
Quantum Update for Clinical Negligence Practitioners 12.30pm - 1.30pm - 29 April 2025
Join us for this webinar with Eliot Woolf KC from Outer Temple Chambers who will:
- Review important recent clinical negligence quantum decisions
- Discuss how to put helpful developments into practice
Please note that registration for each webinar will close one hour before the webinar starts, so please do ensure you have booked your place in advance to guarantee attendance.
Acute and emergency care
Publications and Guidance
New guidance about Tiers of working have been issued by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine. The review of Tiers has been considered as part of the ongoing discussions within the College relating to the position of PAs as part of the emergency medicine workforce and has been significantly debated and carefully considered. As part of this work the College also took the opportunity to bring the tiers up to date with developments around ACPs, new terminology around SAS doctors, and to introduce clearer guidance around supervision.
Information Sharing to Tackle Violence (ISTV). Featuring three short films for clerical staff, clinical staff and healthcare workers.
Road to Recovery – Urgent ad Emergency Care and the Elective Backlog: The Cost of Inaction.
Advisory Statement on Time Critical Medication Self- Administration in Emergency Departments
News
RCEM responds to the government’s Spring Statement
ADHD and the Emergency Physician. In this RCEM Blog, Paul Robinson, post CCT clinician and Co-Lead for Neurodiversity on the College Equity Committee, shares his personal journey with ADHD for Neurodiversity Celebration Week
How we can help
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around acute and emergency issues please contact Claire Bentley.
Children and young people
Publications/Guidance
Alleviating child poverty – a shared endeavour: the critical role ICSs can play in the government’s child poverty strategy. A virtual roundtable of integrated care board (ICB) and integrated care partnership (ICP) leaders shared work on their role in alleviating the impacts of child poverty in their local system. They highlighted the system levers available to deliver this work and proposed ways these levers could be strengthened by government. This briefing summarises those discussions and highlights the key calls to government to ensure that the role of systems is used to their full potential as part of the child poverty strategy.
Lost boys: state of the nation. This report argues that boys and young men are in crisis. While the past 100 years have been marked by great leaps forward in outcomes and rights for women, in this generation it is boys who are being left behind. And by some margin. The report aims to paint a stark picture of what is happening in six significant areas of life. It makes the case that urgent action is needed.
Paediatric diabetes: care and outcomes 2023/24. The National Paediatric Diabetes Audit (NPDA) has published a report on care and outcomes for the period 2023/24 in England and Wales.
A step towards change: members' perspectives on government policies on children and young people’s mental health. The establishment of a new government brought a renewed commitment to babies, children and young people’s mental health. The new government has made a series of commitments in relation to children and young people’s mental health, and has pledged to raise the healthiest generation of children and achieve parity of esteem between physical and mental health. Members of the Coalition were surveyed in order to understand the impact of these new policies on the children and young people’s mental health landscape.
News
How we can help
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around children please contact Deborah Jeremiah.
Clinical Risk / Patient Safety
Publications/Guidance
Report for the Thirlwall Inquiry: analysis of questionnaires from 120 NHS trusts. The Thirlwall Inquiry was set up to examine events at the Countess of Chester Hospital following the trial and subsequent convictions of Lucy Letby for the murder and attempted murder of babies at that hospital. This report was commissioned by the Thirlwall Inquiry. It summarises key themes from responses to a questionnaire sent by the Inquiry to all other NHS trusts with maternity and neonatal units in England.
Virtual wards and hospital at home services. This resource offers more information on virtual wards, also known as hospital-at-home services, which enable patients to receive medical care in their own homes rather than in hospitals. Introduced in England in 2022, this model aims to reduce pressure on hospitals while maintaining high-quality, multidisciplinary care for patients with acute or chronic conditions.
Infected Blood Inquiry to Publish Additional Report. As it published additional evidence and witness statements on 13 March 2025, the Infected Blood Inquiry announced the chair intends to publish a further report, which will consider the timeliness and adequacy of the Government's response on compensation. In April 2025, the Inquiry will publish further statements and announce whether additional hearings will be held, the timeframe for providing written statements and for the publication of the additional report.
Cases
Bartolomucci (a protected party suing by his litigation friend James M Bartolomucci) v Circle Health Group Ltd. [2025] EWHC 529 (KB) The claimant brought a Part 8 claim for declaratory relief seeking a declaration that the defendant was contractually liable for the acts and omissions of the consultants involved in the claimant's hip resurfacing surgery. The claim was dismissed by the court. The court found that the contract did not include the provision of surgical services by the consultants to the claimant, and the consultants provided their services directly to the claimant.
Legislation
Infected Blood Compensation Scheme Regulations 2025 (SI 2025/404). These Regulations expand the infected blood compensation scheme established by the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme Regulations 2024 (the 2024 Regulations). These Regulations revoke the 2024 Regulations. They implement new routes for the payment of compensation to victims of the infected blood scandal, and others affected by it. In doing so, they restate the provision made by the 2024 Regulations, and ensure continuity for applications and compensation payments made under the 2024 Regulations.
News
Organisations call for the Government to accelerate action on women’s health
RCOG publishes manifesto on women’s health priorities for the 10-Year Health Plan
RCOG responds to new abortion commissioning guidance
Bevan Brittan Events
Quantum Update for Clinical Negligence Practitioners 12.30pm - 1.30pm - 29 April 2025
Join us for this webinar with Eliot Woolf KC from Outer Temple Chambers who will:
- Review important recent clinical negligence quantum decisions
- Discuss how to put helpful developments into practice
How we can help
We are working with clients on formulating policies and making it easier to balance treatment with finite resources. We are helping with social care policies and day to day activities such as contact and isolation, human rights issues and life/death decisions. We are working on notifications of harm and death, RIDDOR, CQC compliance, judicial review, infection control law and grappling with the new regulations and guidance. For more information click here.
If you wish to discuss any clinical risk or patient safety issues please contact Joanne Easterbrook or Daniel Morris.
Digital Health
Publications/guidance
Learn fast and build things: lessons from six years of studying AI in the public sector. As governments seek to accelerate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in policy-making and public services, this policy briefing aims to summarise the lessons for success drawn from more than 30 reports and research publications. It examines the use of data and AI across the public sector, in health care, education and social care, and in cross-cutting work on transparency and foundation models.
Preparing the NHS for the AI era: why smarter triage and navigation mean better health care. This report argues that the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) in triage and navigation services could be transformational, improving safety and convenience for patients, increasing NHS productivity, and reducing waiting times across the NHS, without the need to expand the workforce. Better use of AI in triage and navigation services through the GP could free up 29 million appointments each year, and deliver immediate productivity gains worth £340 million a year for call-handlers and receptionists in 111 and general practice alone.
A framework for the safe, efficient and effective implementation, use and maintenance of AI in health and care in London. This framework outlines the importance of artificial intelligence (AI) to the future of the NHS across the capital. Possible applications include improving diagnosis rates, faster automation of patient registrations and more accurate patient referral support tools. The framework aims to help the NHS to deliver safe and ethical pathways to use these tools effectively. It covers the agreed way of introducing, using and monitoring AI products across the NHS in London.
How we can help
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around Digital Health please contact Daniel Morris.
Employment/HR
Publications/guidance
Independent review of physician associates and anaesthesia associates. Information about the independent review of the physician associate and anaesthesia associate professions, led by Professor Gillian Leng CBE.
NHS staff survey and performance stats responses.- Report from Nuffield Trust.
NHS staff survey 2024: national results briefing. The statistical results of the 2024 NHS Staff Survey give invaluable insight into the experiences of more than 700,000 people working in the NHS in autumn 2024. It covers subjects such as bullying and discrimination, morale, compassionate leadership, learning, staff engagement and more.
Fixing the leaking pipeline: measures for growing and retaining nursing students, apprentices and early career nursing staff in England. This report assesses the gaps in the domestic nursing supply pipeline, which limit the potential output, cause nursing students to leave their studies, and lead to early career nurses leaving. It recommends a package of interventions to fix the pipeline and resolve issues of high attrition and low output.
New guidance about Tiers of working have been issued by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine. The review of Tiers has been considered as part of the ongoing discussions within the College relating to the position of PAs as part of the emergency medicine workforce and has been significantly debated and carefully considered. As part of this work the College also took the opportunity to bring the tiers up to date with developments around ACPs, new terminology around SAS doctors, and to introduce clearer guidance around supervision.
News
New rules to prioritise recruiting care workers in England. Employers will be required to prioritise recruiting international care workers already in England before recruiting from overseas.
How we can help
We can offer support and advice on managing many workforce issues including flexing your workforce to respond to the pandemic, managing bank staff, redeployment, vulnerable groups, sick pay, leave options, supporting staff well-being, presenteeism, remote and home working, through FAQs, helpline or policy guidance and practical day to day advice.
If you wish to discuss any employment issues generally please contact Jodie Sinclair, Alastair Currie, Oonagh Sharma, James Gutteridge or Andrew Uttley.
Finance
News
Managing overseas visitors and migrant health charging: NHS trusts. Information and resources for NHS trusts to help with the management and charging of overseas visitors and migrants.
How we can help
For more information on issues around finance, please contact Claire Bentley.
Health Inequalities
Publications/Guidance
Patient experience and trust in NHS primary care. Despite primary care services often being the first point of contact with the NHS for patients, this report highlights a worrying lack of trust among certain ethnic minority groups in the service or care they receive. A third of South Asian participants say they rarely or never trust primary care to meet their health needs. More than 2,680 people completed the primary care ‘trust’ survey issued by the NHS Race & Health Observatory in 2022, which sought views on a broad range of areas including overall trust in, and satisfaction with, primary care providers, and levels of satisfaction with remote health care services.
How racism affects health. This report, published jointly with the Runnymede Trust, examines the relationship between racism and health outcomes. It shows how people of colour experience three building blocks of good health – employment, income, and where people live – and finds large, unacceptable variations according to ethnicity. Going forward, a credible health prevention agenda needs to: take steps to embed racial equity in policy and decision-making around the building blocks of health; work with communities of colour to co-produce strategies to further understand and address racism in the building blocks of health; and improve data quality and collection to enable effective monitoring of impact.
The health of women from ethnic minority groups in England. This long read by Veena Raleigh delves into the data behind the health outcomes and health inequalities experienced by women from ethnic minority backgrounds.
Centering Black voices in health equity. The Partnership for Black People’s Health is a community-led research project that engages Black African and Black Caribbean communities in research to reduce the widely recognised disproportionate burden of health inequalities they face in all areas of medicine and public health. Through a series of public engagement events and collaborations, the project has provided Black communities with spaces to express their concerns, share their experiences and demand better health care. The insights gathered from these discussions are invaluable, shedding light on the specifc needs, challenges and hopes of these communities. This report highlights the urgent need for culturally appropriate health interventions, a demand for greater representation, and the necessity for Black-led initiatives that challenge the inadequacies of the current system.
The cost of racism: how ethnic health inequalities are standing in the way of growth. This briefing considers the benefits of taking an economic approach to assess the costs of racial discrimination to the NHS, individuals and to the economy. It explores a broad array of ethnic inequalities in health care, which lead to excessive and avoidable costs and reduce efficiency in the economy.
Performance of the health service in England: Secretary of State for Health and Social Care annual report 2022 to 2023. Under the National Health Service Act 2006, there is a legal requirement for the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to publish an annual report on the performance of the health and care service in England. This report includes an assessment of: how the Secretary of State has secured the improvement in the quality of services within the NHS; and the progress made to reduce health inequalities for people in England.
How we can help
We have a multidisciplinary team advising NHS commissioners and providers on all aspects of tackling health inequalities, ranging from:
- advising on the new legal framework and compliance with the relevant statutory duties, particularly in the context of service reconfiguration;
- addressing workforce inequalities;
- taking action on patient safety to reduce health inequalities;
- the role of the Care Quality Commission in tackling health inequalities; and
- lessons to be learnt from the Covid-19 pandemic.
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around health inequalities please contact Julia Jones.
Housing
Publications/Guidance
How we can help
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around housing please contact Julia Jones or George Riach
Information sharing/data
Publications/guidance
Information Sharing to Tackle Violence (ISTV). Featuring three short films for clerical staff, clinical staff and healthcare workers.
How we can help
Our specialist team brings a unique combination of experience and skill from across the health, social care, and local authority sectors to help you meet the wide ranging challenges faced organisationally as you deal with the various and complex legislation in respect of information law. That team understands the practical way those legal frameworks impact the range of issues faced, as well as the diverse nature of both public and regulatory expectation in relation to “personal data”, “data protection”, “freedom of information”, “access to health records” and wider “information governance”. As well as assisting your organisation in dealing with challenging requests for disclosure, we can also help to provide strategic advice in relation to policy and information security, as well as bespoke organisational training on key legal issues.
If you wish to discuss any information law and / or governance issues facing your organisation, and how we may help, please contact Jane Bennett.
Inquests
Publications/Guidance
2025 Protocol and Good Practice Model: Disclosure of information between Coroners and the Family Court in cases involving fatality. The President of the Family Division and the Chief Coroner are pleased to announce the publication of a new protocol, which takes effect today: the “2025 Protocol and Good Practice Model: Disclosure of information between Coroners and the Family Court in cases involving fatality”. The Protocol has been designed as a guide to best practice for Family Court Judges and Coroners where there are parallel proceedings. It provides guidance on the flow of information between the two jurisdictions, and on dealing with requests for testing of the deceased to establish paternity. It also explains how Family Court Judges and Coroners can work together to seek expedited post-mortem examination evidence, in cases where care and welfare decisions for surviving children cannot be made until the cause of the deceased’s death is determined.
Cases
R (Gamesys Operations Ltd) v HM Senior Coroner Inner London South [2025] EWHC 659. A coroner has a wide discretion regarding what evidence to call.
How we can help
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around inquests, please contact Amanda Wright- Kluger, Tracey Longfield or Claire Leonard.
Integrated Care
Publications/Guidance
NHS England » The NHS Performance Assessment Framework for 2025/26. As part of its Board meeting papers, NHS England has published an updated NHS performance assessment framework for 2025/2026 which will replace the current Oversight Framework setting out how success and areas for improvement will be identified, and how organisations will be rated. See also briefing prepared by NHS Providers.
Abortion commissioning guidance. Guidance and accompanying resources aim to support integrated care boards (ICBs) to improve abortion services. This includes commissioning guidance and principles; together with the NHS’s objectives and vision for abortion services and key actions for ICBs and partners to take forward to improve care and promote sector resilience.
Alleviating child poverty – a shared endeavour: the critical role ICSs can play in the government’s child poverty strategy. A virtual roundtable of integrated care board (ICB) and integrated care partnership (ICP) leaders shared work on their role in alleviating the impact on child poverty in their local system. The roundtable also highlighted the system levers available to deliver this work and proposed ways these levers could be strengthened by government. This briefing summarises that discussion and highlights the key calls to government to ensure that the role of systems is used to their full potential as part of the child poverty strategy.
Pioneers of reform: realising a new vision of ICB strategic commissioning. This report outlines a new vision for strategic commissioning that will enable integrated care boards (ICBs) to be pioneers of reform, and the skills and capabilities needed to fulfil their statutory duties and their wider role in driving and sustaining transformation in health and care. The report also sets out recommendations for a phased implementation process.
Abolishing NHS England: what you need to know. This briefing from NHS Confederation sets out the key points from developments confirming the abolishment of NHS England
NHS England: Health and Social Care Secretary's statement. A statement by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to the House of Commons announces plans to abolish NHS England. Highlighting the overlap of functions between the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England, the statement discusses plans to strip out the duplication between the two organizations and bring NHS England within the Department within two years. It also announces that Sir James Mackey will be leading the transformation team as the Chief Executive of NHS England
DHSC announces integration of NHS England into department under healthcare reforms. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has announced that NHS England will be reintegrated into the department, reversing the 2012 reorganisation that established it as an independent body. The reform, led by Health Secretary Wes Streeting, aims to reduce administrative duplication and bureaucracy. Sir James Mackey has been appointed as Transition CEO to oversee the immediate transfer of NHS England functions to DHSC, with Dr Penny Dash serving as incoming NHS England chair during the transition period. The changes are intended to generate annual savings in the hundreds of millions through reduced administrative costs.
The reshaping of NHS national bodies has only just started. How will it finish? Following the announcement that NHS England is to be abolished, Siva Anandaciva considers the implications and why at the moment there are more questions than answers.
How we can help
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around integrated care, please contact Anna Davies.
Mental Health
Publications/Guidance
Space to breathe: findings from a survey of smokefree policies and tobacco dependence treatment services in NHS mental health trusts in England, 2024. This research finds that people admitted to mental health trusts have better access to treatment for smoking than they did five years ago, but are being let down by a failure to create smokefree care environments. The findings come as the government prepares to ban smoking on all hospital grounds. Organisational culture and lack of funding were identified as critical barriers to progress in supporting more people to be smokefree.
Monitoring the Mental Health Act: 2023 to 2024. The Care Quality Commission’s annual report sets out its activity and findings during 2023/24 from its engagement with people who are subject to the Mental Health Act 1983 (MHA) and a review of services registered to assess, treat and care for people detained using the MHA. Its key points include: its position on the Mental Health Bill 2024-25; how system pressures mean people are detained far from home or in environments that do not meet their needs; continuing workforce shortages in medical and support roles; inequality in accessing mental health support; children and young people's challenges in accessing mental health care; and quality of inpatient environments.
A step towards change: members' perspectives on government policies on children and young people’s mental health. The establishment of a new government brought a renewed commitment to babies, children and young people’s mental health. The new government has made a series of commitments in relation to children and young people’s mental health, and has pledged to raise the healthiest generation of children and achieve parity of esteem between physical and mental health. Members of the Coalition were surveyed in order to understand the impact of these new policies on the children and young people’s mental health landscape.
News
Law Society supports Mental Health Bill’s vital reforms but more work ahead
Bevan Brittan Updates
Bevan Brittan Events
Case Law Update – Mental Capacity Act 2005 12.30pm - 1.30pm - 3 April 2025
Join us for this session with Rhys Hadden from Serjeants’ Inn Chambers to consider:
- Key case law and important updates from the past 12 months
- Any updates on the revisions to the Code of Practice to the Mental Capacity Act 2005
How we can help
We are experts in advising commissioners, providers and care co-ordinators on the relevant legal frameworks. We deal with complex issues such as deprivation of liberty, state involvement, use of CCTV monitoring, seclusion, physical restraint and covert medication. We can help providers with queries about admission and detention, consent to treatment, forensic service users, transfers, leave, discharge planning and hearings. We can advise commissioners on all matters concerning commissioning responsibility, liability and disputes. For more information click here
If you wish to discuss any mental health issues facing your organisation please contact Hannah Taylor or Simon Lindsay
Primary Care
Publications/Guidance
Guidance: How GP practices can comply with the PSED. An Equality and Human Rights Commission advice note to help general practices (GPs) embed equality considerations in the NHS services they provide. It includes advice on guarding against digital exclusion. Examples of steps GPs could take to comply with the public sector equality duty (PSED) include: setting up a disabled patients' user group to find out their views about a proposed online consultation system; gathering evidence about the experience of patients who share a protected characteristic to understand their needs; and creating equality impact assessments to ensure policies or processes do not present barriers to participation or disadvantage any protected groups.
The future of primary care. This research explores how the government's goal of moving care closer to home can be supported by the innovation and evolution of primary care at scale. The paper is the outcome of several engagement meetings with primary care directors and members of integrated care boards (ICBs) to discuss potential futures for the primary care system as well as the prerequisites and facilitators needed to realise the vision. It lays out both immediate and long-term recommendations and is targeted at primary care and integrated care system (ICS) leaders and policymakers in the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England.
Patient experience and trust in NHS primary care. Despite primary care services often being the first point of contact with the NHS for patients, this report highlights a worrying lack of trust among certain ethnic minority groups in the service or care they receive. A third of South Asian participants say they rarely or never trust primary care to meet their health needs. More than 2,680 people completed the primary care ‘trust’ survey issued by the NHS Race & Health Observatory in 2022, which sought views on a broad range of areas including overall trust in, and satisfaction with, primary care providers, and levels of satisfaction with remote health care services.
Changes to the GP Contract in 2025/26. Letter from Dr Amanda Doyle confirming the final details of the GP Contract for the 2025/26 financial year.
How we can help
If you wish to discuss any issues in primary care then please contact Joanne Easterbrook.
Social Care
Publications/Guidance
Understanding the state of cyber security in adult social care. This research report is intended to equip adult social care providers and their suppliers with the evidence and data needed to understand the extent of the risks posed by cyber. It was commissioned by the Department of Health and Social Care. The project was conducted by Ipsos UK in partnership with the Institute of Public Care at Oxford Brookes University between July 2023 and May 2024.
News
New rules to prioritise recruiting care workers in England. Ahead of the Government's forthcoming Immigration White Paper which will outline plans to reduce legal migration, new rules have been laid in Parliament which will require care providers who want to recruit a new worker from overseas, from 9 April 2025, to first prove that they have attempted to recruit a worker from within England who needs new sponsorship. The rules aim to ensure that those who came to the UK to pursue a career in adult social care can do so and will help end the reliance on overseas recruitment. The Government is also making changes to the Short-Term Student visa route to give expanded powers for caseworkers to refuse visa applications which are suspected of being non-genuine.
How we can help
For ways in which we can help with Social Care issues click here.
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around social care please contact Siwan Griffiths.
General
Publications/Guidance
Preparing the NHS for the AI era: why smarter triage and navigation mean better health care. This report argues that the impact of AI in triage and navigation services could be transformational, improving safety and convenience for patients, increasing NHS productivity, and reducing waiting times across the NHS, without the need to expand the workforce. Better use of AI in triage and navigation services through the GP could free up 29 million appointments each year, and deliver immediate productivity gains worth £340 million a year for call-handlers and receptionists in 111 and general practice alone.
NHS: Committee asks for government plans to prevent cross-border healthcare delays. The Welsh Affairs Committee has asked the UK and Welsh Governments for more detail on their plans to improve cross-border healthcare between England and Wales, following the UK Government's announced plans to abolish NHS England. The Committee asks whether the governments can develop systems to allow patients to be seen across the border more easily, such as through a single electronic patient record. The letters also ask for details of any tangible benefits for patients likely to come from the "new partnership" between the UK and Welsh Governments, announced in September 2024, to drive down waiting lists on both sides of the border.
Health and climate adaptation report 2025. Under the adaptation reporting powers of the Climate Change Act, the Greener NHS programme has been invited by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to produce the health and climate adaptation reports on behalf of the sector. These reports aim to support the NHS to deliver a climate-smart, resilient health service.
World’s largest quango scrapped under reforms to put patients first. Changes to NHS England will reduce bureaucracy, make savings and empower NHS staff to deliver better care for patients. The Department of Health and Social Care has announced that NHS England will be reintegrated into the department. The reform aims to reduce administrative duplication and bureaucracy. The changes are intended to generate annual savings in the hundreds of millions through reduced administrative costs.
NHS England: Health and Social Care Secretary's statement. A statement by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to the House of Commons announces plans to abolish NHS England. Highlighting the overlap of functions between the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England, the statement discusses plans to strip out the duplication between the two organizations and bring NHS England within the Department within two years. It also announces that Sir James Mackey will be leading the transformation team as the Chief Executive of NHS England
DHSC announces integration of NHS England into department under healthcare reforms. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has announced that NHS England will be reintegrated into the department, reversing the 2012 reorganisation that established it as an independent body. The reform, led by Health Secretary Wes Streeting, aims to reduce administrative duplication and bureaucracy. Sir James Mackey has been appointed as Transition CEO to oversee the immediate transfer of NHS England functions to DHSC, with Dr Penny Dash serving as incoming NHS England chair during the transition period. The changes are intended to generate annual savings in the hundreds of millions through reduced administrative costs.
The reshaping of NHS national bodies has only just started. How will it finish? Following the announcement that NHS England is to be abolished, Siva Anandaciva considers the implications and why at the moment there are more questions than answers.
Consultations
Reducing NHS waiting times for elective care. A Public Accounts Committee inquiry seeks views on reducing NHS waiting times for elective care following the National Audit Office's 2025 report on NHS England's (NHSE) management of elective care transformation programmes, which looked at the plans for recovering waiting times, which aim to achieve the NHS statutory standard by 2029. Based on the report, the Committee will hear from senior officials at NHSE and the Department for Health and Social Care on subjects including: progress on targets to increase elective activity and end long waits for treatment; progress across the three areas of diagnosis, surgery, and outpatients; and governance and oversight of the transformation programmes. Comments by 23.59 on 17 April 2025.
Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill 2024-25 (HC Bill 12). A Bill to allow adults who are terminally ill, subject to safeguards and protections, to request and be provided with assistance to end their own life; and for connected purposes.
News
Keir Starmer to abolish NHS England and bring health service back under 'democratic control'
Crack teams get patients off waiting lists at twice the speed
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