Residents of Bexley are being asked for their views on the renewal of a formal partnership agreement between NHS South East London Clinical Commissioning Group (SEL CCG) and the London Borough of Bexley.

The current agreement has been in place for six years and covers the delivery of adult social care and health services. It allows for the formation of pooled budgets, the ability to pool staff, goods or services or the making of payments. By working closely together in this way, the two organisations can aim to achieve the best outcomes for Bexley residents.

The Council and CCG want to know the views of local people and are carrying out a formal consultation between now and 21 January 2021.

The proposals for the new agreement were outlined in a report to December’s Bexley Health and Wellbeing Board. This report is available online here and sets out key objectives for the new partnership agreement which includes;

• A continued focus of the pooled fund on adults aged 18 years and over and those with the greatest needs, including older people, people with a disability and/or mental health needs, people with long term conditions, and their carers.
• Taking a more strategic outcomes-based approach to achieving our shared vision of improving the health and wellbeing of the local population.
• Better planning and integrated commissioning of health and social care services to meet the needs of the local population. For example, the proposal to include the CCG’s NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) budget in the pooled fund will support a system-wide collaborative approach to the assessment of and commissioning for residents who are eligible for CHC,

Leader of the London Borough of Bexley and Chairman of Bexley’s Health and Wellbeing Board, Cllr Teresa O’Neill OBE said: “Our close partnership with the CCG has been extremely successful over the past six years, allowing us to pool resources, enabling them to be deployed more efficiently, providing more effective, joined-up care for our residents. In line with NHS legislation, the time has come now to review the partnership and we are keen to hear from residents, as well as local groups and organisations.”

Diana Braithwaite, the Director of Borough Operations (Bexley) from SEL CCG, said; “I would really encourage as many people as possible to share their views with us about the partnership.”

The consultation is open to anyone who wishes to comment on the proposed arrangements, including –

• people who live and work in Bexley
• people who use the services
• carers and family members
• professionals
• partners organisations
• providers
• other stakeholders.

A Council officer or CCG representative will be available to attend local stakeholder groups by invitation to discuss the proposals. The survey is available online at www.bexley.gov.uk/section-75