22 April 2021 – Mental Health Network – governance during the COVID-19 pandemic webinar

Overheard during this week’s webinar:

“A vision for provider collaboratives has developed differently from the original model included in the white paper, however they aren’t mutually exclusive, and they could continue to evolve and morph into each other. When place was discussed, we talked about the possibility of something that may look like a health and wellbeing board which can vary enormously around the country, or could it be more like a ‘doing’ collaborative with a pooled budget between NHS, charities and local authorities delivered at place.”

“Reflecting on scale, what happens if there are two providers but only one on the board? We have ICPs which are potentially bigger than some ICSs around the country. It is all about what place can mean to us, as ICPs are more than just place as it involves a number of local authorities. We are not getting a lot of feedback about what is expected, and in that vacuum of discussion we are going ahead with plans and proposing what we think will work for us.”

“In our ICS, we are being informed that our geography is up for radical change. It is only a year before the legislation is due to take force, so the formulation could look entirely different if geographical maps change. I appreciate the mapping, but I feel this is exclusively NHS mapping. Local authorities do not buy into it and have their own boards and procedures in place, at both a principle and practical level.”

“Trusts can be run quite differently. Given all are starting from a different point, the key is to know how to understand how to take responsibility for strategic thinking. It’s about considering what we would or could be doing, even if the white paper hadn’t come along, and we need to consider what to do and where to collaborate and getting on with this now. If the relationships aren’t being developed at this point then there is a risk they won’t be where they need to be.”

“Our boards have developed to deal with quality, finance and assurance – we are now asking them to be creatively strategic – which demands a different knowledge base and set of skills.”

These meetings are by invitation only. For further details, visit our website https://www.good-governance.org.uk/events/.

If you have any comments, questions or suggestions about these webinars, please contact: events@good-governance.org.uk