BVSC are working with Warwickshire & Solihull Community and Voluntary Action (CAVA) and NHS Birmingham and Solihull on the programme of embedding the voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCFSE) sector into Birmingham and Solihull’s Integrated Care System (ICS) 

On the 1^st July 2022 Integrated Care Systems (ICS) were launched across the UK.  The ICS that covers Birmingham and Solihull is officially entitled Birmingham and Solihull Integrated Care System. We have provided a summary of developments and key updates in these slides along with progress of the VCFSE Leadership Alliance (Dynamic Network) – the single point of contact into the health and care system.

As part of October’s meetings we engaged on the ICS 10 Year Strategy, gaining lots of feedback and insights from the sector which will help shape how the strategy is effectively implemented. Engagement activities continue to take place throughout November on the strategy and there are surveys for both workforce (for all organisations across Birmingham and Solihull) and citizens which you can complete through the Integrated Care Partnership section on the ICS website – ‘Engaging with you on our Strategy’.

We would like to invite you to the next meetings taking place in December – AGENDA as follows:

• Fairer Futures Fund
• Cost of Living and Health
• VCFSE Dynamic Network – Priorities and Conditions of Success
• Our Future Health Research programme
• VCFSE Sector updates
• Any Other Business

These meetings are open to ALL voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise organisations. To register for one of place-based meetings, please follow the links below.  All meetings will be held virtually via Microsoft Teams for 2 hours.

The meeting dates & joining instructions for the virtual place-based sessions are as follows:

• Friday 2^nd December 10am – 12pm: Erdington & Sutton Coldfield
• Friday 2^nd December 1.30pm – 3.30pm: Ladywood & Perry Barr
• Monday 5^th December 10am – 12pm: Hodge Hill & Yardley
• Monday 5^th December 2pm – 4pm: Hall Green & Selly Oak
• Thursday 8^th December 10am – 12pm: Edgbaston & Northfield

 

What are Integrated Care Systems: 

• Integrated care systems (ICSs) are geographically-based partnerships between the organisations that meet health and care needs across an area, to coordinate services and to plan in a way that improves population health and reduces inequalities between different groups.
• They are part of a fundamental shift in the way the health and care system is organised, away from competition and organisational autonomy and towards collaboration.

NHS England and NHS Improvement created a helpful video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mz4FFE2y8PM). This video, with subtitles, explains more about the aims and ambitions of Integrated Care Systems. One of the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic is that people need support which is joined up across local councils, the NHS and voluntary and community organisations. This video explains how Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) embed this collaboration, helping local services to respond to the challenges of the pandemic and beyond. We want to make ICSs as strong and effective as possible in every part of England, with partnership working with the ambition to tackle health inequalities, help communities thrive and achieve the very best for everyone.

There is a helpful publication on the Kings Fund website: Integrated care systems explained: making sense of systems, places and neighbourhood.