Health Management and Policy Alert

Tackling modern slavery in NHS procurement: proposed regulations and guidance

Department of Health and Social Care - 
This consultation invites views on the draft National Health Service (Procurement, Slavery and Human Trafficking) Regulations 2024 and accompanying guidance. It is seeking opinions on: how the regulations will be implemented; the impact of the regulations on tackling modern slavery; how frameworks and dynamic markets should assess and manage modern slavery risks; and how public bodies want to be supported to implement these new duties. The closing date for comments is 13 February 2025.

• Consultation
• Department of Health and Social Care - consultations

Delivering with dignity: a framework for strengthening commissioning and provision of healthcare services for people seeking asylum

British Red Cross -
This report finds that people seeking asylum in England often have complex health needs and yet face barriers to accessing timely, quality, and appropriate health care. It sets out a framework of good practice to remove these barriers and ensure people can access the health care that they are entitled to.

• Report
• British Red Cross - publications

Commissioning to reduce health inequalities: the role of finance

Healthcare Financial Management Association - 

This briefing explores how NHS finance staff can contribute to commissioning approaches which help reduce health inequalities. It sets out the direction of travel, explains the importance of population health management, and looks at the skills and expertise that finance staff can bring to this space.

• Case study
• More detail 

NHS public health functions agreement 2023 to 2024

Department of Health and Social Care -
This guidance contains information about NHS England's objectives and funding arrangements as it commissions public health services. The NHS public health functions agreement sets out the arrangements under which the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care delegates responsibility to NHS England for certain public health services. The services currently commissioned in this way are: national immunisation programmes; national population screening programmes; child health information services; public health services for adults and children in secure and detained settings in England; and sexual assault services.

• Guidance
• Department of Health and Social Care - publications

NHS supply chain and efficiencies in procurement

National Audit Office - 
This report examines how the NHS supply chain was set up, whether it has achieved its principal objectives of saving money and increasing its market share, and what more needs to be done to secure greater efficiencies, It concludes that, while Supply Chain has the potential to secure further savings for the NHS, it is not yet fulfilling that potential.

• Report
• National Audit Office - press release

Competition in public procurement

House of Commons Committee of Public Accounts -
The government spent £259bn procuring goods and services in 2021-22, but this report finds that it is unable to demonstrate that it is achieving value for money in public procurement, due to significant issues with the quality and completeness of data on contracts.

• Report
• House of Commons Committee of Public Accounts - news

Local authority marketing sustainability plans: insights report

Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) - 
This report details a number of important themes identified by local authorities (LAs) when developing strategic approaches to market sustainability. These include: greater involvement of providers, service users and their friends and family; expanding domiciliary care markets and securing greater supply; and stabilising and adapting care home markets to the changing needs of local populations.

• Report

Opportunities for flexible commissioning in primary care dentistry: a framework for commissioners

NHS England - 

This guidance provides integrated care boards (ICBs) with an outline of the legal requirements of the national dental contractual framework and highlights the key considerations associated with procuring additional and further services, previously termed ‘flexible commissioning’.

• Framework
• More detail

Improving integrated commissioning in health and social care

Department of Health and Social Care -
This call for evidence views on changes to section 75 of the NHS Act 2006 to increase the use of pooled budgets to support the integration of health and care. It covers topics such as widening the scope to include additional health-related functions of local authorities and NHS bodies, perceived barriers to pooling of budgets, and strengthening and/or simplifying the governance of section 75. The call for evidence closes on 31 October 2023.

• Call for evidence
• Department of Health and Social Care - publications

 

New perspectives on market facilitation: provider commissioner relationships

Institute of Public Care -
This briefing outlines how good working relationships between commissioning and care provider organisations are crucial and they have become even more so since the Covid-19 pandemic and the cost of living crisis. It offers a perspective on how the current commissioning climate has influenced these relationships and provides a perspective on how the 'right' engagement activities can positively impact on having good working relationships and trust.

• Briefing
• Institute of Public Care - publications