The Auditorium, The Durham Centre, DH1 1TN
Board meeting held in public on Tuesday 3 June 2025
Tuesday 3 June 2025, 10.30am
Please contact nencicb-sun.icbcorporateoffice@nhs.net
Agenda items
5 - Board minutes from previous meeting held on 25 March 2025
Draft minutes from the meeting held on 25 March 2025 for approval
Action owners to provide updates on any outstanding actions.
7 - Notification of items of any other business
Consider items of any other business
The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of recent activity carried out by the ICB team, as well as some key national policy updates.
9.1 - 2025/26 Financial and Operational Plan
This paper presents the final financial and operational plan for both the ICB and wider ICS for 2025/26.
Presentation on the ICB high level operating model.
10 - Board Assurance Framework Q4, 2024/25 (including interim Q1, 2025/26 position)
The purpose of this report is to provide the Board with a refreshed Board Assurance Framework for quarter 4, 2024/25 (including interim Q1 2025/26 position) and an updated corporate risk register for review and consideration.
11 - Highlight Reports and Confirmed Minutes of the Committees of the Board
Highlight reports and confirmed minutes of the Committees of the Board which include 2024/25 annual review of effectiveness.
To provide the Board with an overview of the decisions agreed at the Executive Committee meetings in March and April 2025 and the confirmed minutes from these meetings.
The annual review 2024/25 provides a summary of the Committee's activity throughout the year.
Executive Committee Highlight Report
20250311 APPROVED Public Executive Committee Minutes
11.2 - Quality and Safety Committee
To provide the Board with a summary of the key points from the meeting of the Quality and Safety Committee held on 8 May 2025 and the confirmed minutes from the 11 March 2025.
The annual review 2024/25 provides a summary of the Committee's activity throughout the year.
Quality and Safety Committee Highlight Report
11.3 - Finance, Performance and Investment Committee
To provide the Board with an overview of the key points and approved minutes from the FPI Committee meeting held on 6 March 2025.
The annual review 2024/25 provides a summary of the Committee's activity throughout the year.
Finance Performance and Investment Committee Highlight Report
APPROVED Finance Performance and Investment Minutes March 2025
Finance Performance and Investment Committee Annual Review 2024/25
To provide the Board with the key highlights from the Audit Committee meeting on 10 April 2025, the two Extraordinary Audit Committee meetings held on 26 February and 23 April 2025 and the confirmed minutes from the meeting held on 09 January 2025.
The annual review 2024/25 provides a summary of the Committee's activity throughout the year.
Audit Committee Highlight Report
12 - Terms of Reference - Service Change Advisory Group
The Board is asked to approve the Service Change Advisory Group terms of reference.
Terms Of Reference Front Cover Service Change Advisory Group
13 - Integrated Delivery Report
The NENC Integrated Delivery Report (IDR) provides an overview of quality and performance, highlighting any significant changes, areas of risk and mitigating actions.
The report uses published performance and quality data covering February 2025 for most metrics and March 2025 for others, unless otherwise specified. Finance data is for February 2025 (Month 11).
13.1 - All Age Continuing Care
Presentation on All Age Continuing Care performance
To provide an update on the financial performance of the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board (NENC ICB) and NENC Integrated Care System (ICS) in the financial year 2024/25 for the year ended 31 March 2025.
15 - Primary Care Urgent Dental Access Recovery Plan
The purpose of this report is to provide the ICB Board with an overview of the Dental Access Recovery programme in relation to urgent dental care.
16 - Digital Inclusion Strategy
To present the NENC ICS Digital Inclusion Strategy to the Board for approval.
Digital Inclusion Strategy Front Cover
17 - Medicines Strategy 2025-2030
The report provides an overview of the development of the draft Medicines Strategy 2025-2030.
Medicines Strategy 2025-2030 Board Paper
DRAFT Medicines Strategy 2025-2030
Medicines Strategy 2025-2030 Presentation
18 - NENC ICS Approach to Neighbourhood Health
The purpose of this report is to provide assurance to the Board on the development and implementation of the Integrated Neighbourhood Health (INH) model in North East and North Cumbria.
Integrated Neighbourhood Health Board Report June 2025
Intregrated Neighbourhood Health appendices 1-3
NENC ICB Board Neighbourhood Health Presentation
19 - Questions from the public
Question 1
The NHS 2025/2026 Priorities & Operational Planning Guidance asks Integrated Care Systems to Optimise medicines value and improve the adoption of, and compliance with, best value NHS Supply Chain Frameworks in medicine and procurement.
Which NHS Supply Chain Frameworks will the ICB be prioritising to show projected savings in to implement the planning guidance?
Question 1 Response
The Integrated Care Board is committed to delivering efficiency and value across our commissioning and procurement activities in line with the NHS England's planning guidance. As part of this, we are working closely with NHS Supply Chain to identify and prioritise frameworks that deliver the highest potential for cost savings, clinical value and systemwide benefits.
For 2025/26, the ICB will be prioritising medicines procurement strategies that deliver both clinical and financial value. Specifically, we will be focusing on following the Medicines Procurement and Supply Chain framework to support delivery of planned efficiencies.
Question 2
Keep Our NHS Public North East note that there are significant risks and that, additionally, relevant equality and quality impact assessments will take place on all efficiency plans.
We also noted the statement made at the last ICB meeting by the CEO Sam Allen about considering how some services that are currently provided could become ‘discretionary’ in future.
- Will all of the risk, equality and quality impact assessments be made public and be presented at the ICB meeting?
- As a result of the assessment / review process, will any services that are currently provided free of charge become ‘discretionary’
- Will the list of these ‘discretionary’ services be made public and shared with Healthwatch representatives and others, in order to consult the public?
Question 2 Response
Any changes to services deemed a significant variation need to follow an appropriate consultation or engagement process in line with the Health and Social Care Act.
All NHS organisations are required to undertake Equality, Quality Impact Assessments (EQIA), and every NHS organisation in the North East will have a policy for developing, approving, and monitoring these. Each organisation may have a different approach to what is published.
The reporting of EQIAs will be formally presented at every meeting of the NENC ICB's Quality and Safety Committee (QSC). The paper will summarise quality and safety risks and include a list of completed EQIAs in all future papers. A summary report from the QSC is then presented at every NENC ICB board.
Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) continuously review service needs and the services they commission. They may need to decommission some services that are deemed less critical to the prevention, treatment, or care within the NHS, taking into account the funds made available by the government. This may be due to the availability of better services or the necessity to make difficult decisions about which services the NENC NHS can afford or how they are provided within limited resources. Rather than being considered "discretionary," these services may be decommissioned or amended. Every effort is made to ensure that service provision is as efficient and effective as possible to maximise value to the public purse.
The ICB will make public any planned service changes and will follow appropriate consultation and engagement regulations and guidance. This includes working with and sharing information with Healthwatch and other relevant organisations.