New Health and Wellbeing Board kick starts shadow year
Cumbria’s new Health and Wellbeing Board (CHW) was launched on Friday, April 27, to help improve the health of the population in the county as the transfer of responsibility for a range of public health services moves from NHS Cumbria to Cumbria County Council.
From April 2013 – following the recently passed Health and Social Care Act – there will be changes in the health and social care system designed to improve the quality and choice of care for patients, and give GPs and other clinicians the primary responsibility for commissioning health care.
The new shadow board will enable the new body to begin working together, pooling expertise and helping to create a strategy for the county ahead of it becoming a formal organisation.
It brings together local commissioners of health and social care, public health, councillors, and HealthWatch to agree an approach to improving local health and wellbeing and reducing health inequalities. They will build strong and effective partnerships which improve commissioning and delivery of services across the NHS and local government.
With its first meeting the CHW Board looked ahead at the transfer of health services and at four key areas in the county:
- Health inequalities
- Children and young people
- Mental health and alcohol
- Ageing population
Cllr James Airey, Chairman of the CHW Board and Cumbria County Council’s Cabinet member for Adult Social Care, said:
“This is a new group of people, operating in a new way, to make a big difference to the people of Cumbrians. We want health care to be more efficient, more effective and have better outcomes. This board is at the centre of a big shift in the delivery of public health and in the relationship between local authorities and the NHS in Cumbria, and the early and effective implementation of the board here means the county council is well placed to provide leadership for the future of health in Cumbria. We’ve got a great opportunity to continue our positive work with the local NHS, and especially with the new clinical commissioning groups, to ensure we can make sure local needs are met.”
Dr Geoff Joliffe, one of the Cumbria Clinical Commissioning Group’s lead GPs and a member of the CWB, said:
“This is a very exciting opportunity for Cumbria. This new board is a different way of bringing together the main public bodies to benefit health and wellbeing in the county. Although driven from the county council, it’s a new type of local government organisation in that it brings together the county and district councils, health service including General Practitioners to make key decisions about how inequalities in health should be tackled and public money invested. As the Board develops, we will be using new ways to engage the public in helping to shape this extremely important agenda for the health and wellbeing of the county. Cumbria has been preparing for this for the last three years and with commitment of all parties we will be able to put the county on the national map for this work in the months and years ahead.”
Third Sector representative
Organisation: Shadow Cumbria Health and Wellbeing Board
Background
There has been a third sector representative on Cumbria's Health and Wellbeing Board, elected from Cumbria Action for Health Network, for the last 5 years. However, the Health and Social Care Bill contains proposals for a Health and Wellbeing Board with a much broader remit, and Cumbria is developing its board to meet these. This means it is now appropriate to select a new third sector representative, against a revised person specification and role description. This is a key position for Cumbria's Third Sector.
Selection Process
Applicants must be proposed by a third sector organisation, and must return a completed application form.
Candidates will be shortlisted by a selection committee from Cumbria Third Sector Network Executive. This committee will:
- identify those candidates it believes meet the person specification
- choose the strongest candidates from these (this may include an interview stage)
- put forward up to three strong candidates for election by the Third Sector Network
If only one candidate meets the person specification, or if one candidate is clearly significantly stronger than the others, the committee has the power to appoint them to the role without election.
For a full job specification and application form, please contact Jozi Brown on 01768 800350 or jozib@cumbriacvs.org.uk
You can also click here for the Role Description and the Application
Please return completed application forms to:
Wendy Serginson
Cumbria CVS
6 Hobson Court
Gillan Way
Penrith
CA11 9GQ
Tel: 01768 800350
Closing date for applications: Friday 27 July 2012
Interview dates: To be arranged
To view the Department of Health ‘Short Guide to Health & Wellbeing Boards', please visit their website: http://healthandcare.dh.gov.uk/hwb-guide/
If you would like to discuss this role, please contact either Jozi Brown or Carolyn Otley on 01768 800350 or email: jozib@cumbriacvs.org.uk