The NHS North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB) is the statutory decision-making body of the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care System (ICS). The ICB is responsible for the commissioning of health services and the effective stewardship of NHS spending for all of the people who live in the North East and North Cumbria. We are the largest ICS in the country, with a population of 3 million people spread across large conurbations over 13 locality areas and some of the most rural and isolated parts of England. 

This Constitution and supporting documents (included within the Governance Handbook) describes the framework for the Integrated Care Board to delegate decision-making authority, functions and resources to the 13 locality areas across North East and North Cumbria to ensure that we meet the diverse needs of our citizens and communities. These place-based partnerships, overseen by Health and Wellbeing Boards, and including councils, health and care providers, the voluntary community and social enterprise sector and Healthwatch, are key to achieving the ambitious improvements we want to see.

This Constitution sets out how we will organise ourselves to meet our ambitions to provide the best health and care, ensuring that our decisions are always taken in the interest of the patients and populations that we are proud to serve.

We are currently refreshing our strategic plan in the coming months and will be involving patients, partner organisations and the public in its development. 

The NHS, councils and the community, voluntary and social enterprise sector (VCSE) have come together to develop a plan to improve health and care in the North East and North Cumbria.

Our Integrated Care Strategy starts to set out our key goals and plans on how we will improve the health and wellbeing of people living and working in our region by 2030 and for the years beyond too. 

All interests will remain on the public register for six months after the interest has expired, however, records will be retained by the ICB for a minimum of 6 years after the date on which it expired. These may be obtained by contacting: necsu.nenc.icb-roi@nhs.net  

The ICB's Standards of Business Conduct and Conflicts of Interest Policy applies to all its staff.

Any breaches of the Policy relating will be published here in line with statutory guidance. To-date, there have been no such breaches. Individuals, who have concerns regarding conflict of interest or ethical misconduct either in respect of themselves or colleagues, should raise it in the first instance with their manager. Alternatively, they can raise it as an issue using the Raising Concerns at Work Policy or contacting the Conflict of Interest Guardian.

For all previous registers from our predecessor CCGs (NHS Tees Valley CCG, NHS County Durham CCG, NHS Newcastle Gateshead CCG, NHS North Cumbria CCG, NHS North Tyneside CCG, NHS Northumberland CCG, NHS South Tyneside CCG, NHS Sunderland CCG) please visit our Legacy page.

All decisions by the Integrated Care Board (ICB) on the provision or acceptance of gifts and hospitality must be able to withstand both internal and external scrutiny. Casual gifts or offers of hospitality by contractors or others must not be in any way connected with the performance of duties so as to constitute an offence under the Bribery Act 2010 or not comply with the requirements of the NHS England Statutory Guidance on Declarations of Interest.

The ICB has robust processes in place to ensure that individuals do not accept gifts or hospitality or other benefits, which might reasonably be seen to compromise their professional judgement or integrity.  The Standards of Business Conduct and Conflicts of Interest Policy provides further detail.

The Gifts, Hospitality and Sponsorship Register will be released on a quarterly basis.

NENC ICB maintains a register of procurement decisions and contracts awarded, which also includes a record of any related conflicts of interest as appropriate. 

The register of procurement decisions will be published on a quarterly basis. You can view it here.

As a health and care system we are committed to developing a consistent approach with our partners in the public and voluntary sectors to sustainability, recycling, improving air quality and carbon reduction, as well as increasing access to green spaces. We have joined a cross-sector coalition working to enable our region to become England’s greenest region by 2030.

A Domestic Homicide Review (DHR) is a multi-agency review of the circumstances in which the death of a person aged 16 or over has, or appears to have, resulted from violence, abuse or neglect by a person to whom they were related or with whom they were, or had been, in an intimate personal relationship, or a member of the same household as themselves.

The purpose of a domestic homicide review is to: 

• Establish what lessons can be learned from the domestic homicide and how local professionals and organisations work individually and together to safeguard victims 
• Identify clearly what those lessons are both within and between agencies, how and within what timescales they will be acted on, and what is to change as a result 
• Apply these lessons to service responses including changes to policies and procedures as appropriate 
• Prevent domestic homicide and improve service responses for all domestic abuse victims and their children through improved intra and inter agency working

You can view recent reports below

A Joint Domestic Homicide Review and independent mental health homicide investigation in April 2019 in Northumberland: Published October 2022

NHSE commissioned an independent investigation following the case of a mental healthcare related homicide to identify areas for improvement, working with Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust and the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board to ensure recommendations are addressed and shared with the wider mental health system.

An independent review of the investigation undertaken by Tees Esk and Wear Valley NHS Foundation Trust into the care and treatment of Mr H.

Independent investigation reports for incidents recorded in the North East and North Cumbria are published here.

Summary of decisions made regarding new product requests and formulary amendments approved at a meeting of the ICB Executive Committee.

This framework has been drafted by involvement leads across the region and reflects the ambition we have for involvement and engagement across our ICS.