Finance Minister has announced £129 million for
six transformation projects across healthcare, special
educational needs, justice and infrastructure.
Announcing the funding which will be provided over a five-year
period, Finance Minister O'Dowd said: “As our society
changes, we must ensure our public services adapt and evolve to
meet the new and changing needs of citizens. Transforming how we
deliver services requires courage and ambition to try new ways of
doing things.
“I am pleased today to announce £129m of funding for
innovative projects which will help support and drive the
transformation of our public services.
“This funding which will make a real difference improving
health outcomes for citizens, supporting children with special
educational needs and funding initiatives in our justice system.
It will also support infrastructure projects to address pressure
on our constrained drainage and wastewater infrastructure and
improvements in the planning system which is central to economic
growth.”
The six proposals being funded are:
- £61m for the Department of Health's Primary Care
Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) proposal to help stabilise Primary
Care, focus on prevention and management of conditions away from
hospital settings and better utilise the skills of the community
and voluntary sector. This funding will enable completion of the
model in the seven existing MDT areas and expansion into five new
GP Federation areas.
- £27.5m for the Department of Education's proposal to support
children with special educational needs to reform services to
ensure better outcomes for children. This proposal will
support a suite of pilot programmes focused on early intervention
and building an appropriately skilled education workforce.
- £20.45m for the Department of Justice and Public Prosecution
Service's proposal on Speeding Up and Transforming the Criminal
Justice system to reduce delay, maximise efficiencies and free up
capacity in the courts for more serious cases.
- £2.19m for the Department of Justice's Electronic Tagging
proposal, to transform the way in which they monitor individuals
released into the community.
- £15m for the Department for Infrastructure's Urban Drainage
proposal to fund a pilot project for transforming the way in
which rainwater is managed in our towns and cities.
- £3m for the Department for Infrastructure, for its
Transforming Planning proposal to help the Planning Appeals
Commission address its resource issues through making
improvements in the planning system.
In addition to the £129m allocated, a further £0.3m will be
allocated to the Executive Office to undertake a Digital Maturity
Assessment of 18 proposals focused on digital transformation.
The funding is part of the £235 million provided by the UK
Government specifically for public sector transformation as part
of the financial package to restore the Executive. Following
allocation of these funds, around £100 million will remain for
further distribution for digital proposals deemed
transformational following the Digital Maturity Assessment and
future calls for transformation proposals.
Concluding Minister O'Dowd said: “While this funding will
in no way tackle the magnitude of issues at hand, it will be
significant in helping to develop and implement a model of
delivery, to stimulate the wider transformation of public
services. Transformation will take time and a
collective effort, today is an important step on that
journey.”
Notes to editors:
1. A copy of the Minister's Oral Statement can be viewed
at: https://www.finance-ni.gov.uk/publications/oral-statement-public-sector-transformation
2. The Primary Care Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) Programme
is a partnership between GP Federations and HSC Trusts which
introduces new physiotherapy, social work and mental health roles
into general practice, to work alongside the existing practice
teams. It aims to move from a system of treating illness to
supporting good physical and mental health, and social
wellbeing.
3. On 9 May 2024, the Executive agreed to establish an interim
Board, Chaired by the Head of the Civil Service, Jayne Brady, and
agreed the assessment criteria to consider transformation
proposals from departments.
4. The criteria upon which proposals were sought, included
proposals which could:
- Increase the financial sustainability of public services.
- Transform the model of delivery of public services, to
improve effectiveness and efficiency; and
- Prevention, Cost Savings, and Early Intervention.
5. The interim Public Sector Transformation Board is a
non-statutory and independent body whose primary role is to
advise and make recommendations on how to utilise funding which
has been ring fenced for the purpose of transformation.
