Responding to the new NHS Delivery Plan, Cllr Linda Thomas, Vice
Chair of the LGA's Community Wellbeing Board, said:
"Councils fully support the aim to improve the health and
wellbeing of our nation and have a crucial role to play through
shaping local public services and as leaders of their local
communities. We have fully supported the ambitions in the Five
Year Forward View aimed at supporting the health of our nation.
"Local authorities already contribute to the wider determinants
of health through housing, leisure, education, community support
and wider services, as well as social care. They have statutory
responsibilities through Health and Wellbeing Boards and also
spend more than £3.2 billion each year specifically on public
health, including NHS services such as sexual health, drug and
alcohol treatment and NHS Health Checks, however this has not
been reflected in the report.
"We had also hoped to see a greater recognition of the role
councils play in working with local communities to identify local
priorities and make decisions about where to direct scarce
resources. It is therefore disappointing that there is little
recognition of the vital role that councils and democratically
elected councillors can play in delivering better and more
joined-up social care and health services for their local
residents.
"The additional £2 billion for adult social care announced in the
Spring Budget is intended to help meet adult social care needs,
support the provider market, and relieve pressures on the NHS,
including helping people out of hospital.
"Whilst it will go some way to relieving pressures it is not
enough to resolve all short-term issues, and nor is it a
long-term solution to what is an ongoing crisis for the sector.
"We have been clear that decisions about how this money is
invested should be left to councils, working with their health
partners and others. The way the money is targeted should be
decided locally and this will rightly be different in different
areas, depending on the needs of local people.
"Councils fully support the commitment to improve the health of
their residents but need to be able to play a full and equal
role."
