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On 16 December 2024, the Board of NHS Highland and Members of The Highland Council agreed in principle to commit to planning for the integration of health, education and social care services. A formal implementation plan was developed. The first part of this plan was presented to a meeting of The Highland Council and NHS Highland Board on 12 May 2024, and the second part was considered at another joint meeting on 23 June 2024. At the meeting on 12 May, members of The Highland Council and directors of NHS Highland confirmed their intention to progress far-reaching plans to integrate health, education and social care services in the Highlands. The second report, presented to the joint meeting of the two organisations on 23 June, set out the scope of services to be transferred to each lead agency and the governance arrangements to ensure each agency is able to discharge its new responsibilities whilst retaining accountability. The Highland Council and NHS Highland developed planning for integration on the basis that the most appropriate single lead agency for the delivery of Adult Care is NHS Highland and that the most appropriate single lead agency for Children’s Services is The Highland Council. The solution for Highland was designed specifically for this area and took into account the variety of integration models tried and tested by other areas of the country. The detail of the changes required to achieve integration were decided by everyone involved in health, education and social work services – both people using the services and those working within the services. To capture the views of everyone in Highland concerned with Children’s and Adult Services about the proposed model of care, workshops and events took place during a series of months late 2024 / early 2024. As part of this, planning for integration featured on the agenda for various events, meetings, seminars and other consultations throughout Highland, including The Highland Council ward forums, local network groups, user groups and at project specific events. For copies of key papers of The Highland Council and NHS Highland relating to planning for integration, click on the links below:
To view the minutes of past meetings of the Planning for Integration Programme Board, click on the links below:
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