We believe that people who live with a learning disability or experience mental health issues can and should enjoy a fulfilling life.

That means being mentally and physically healthy, achieving their full potential in education and employment, having positive relationships with the people around them and playing an active role in their local community.

Both the NHS and local authorities spend significant amounts of public money on services for people with mental health needs. Services provide important support, treatment and care to people when they are unwell, but also help to prevent challenges and enable people to understand and manage their condition.

Joint Commissioning is about the NHS and our partner local authorities planning to use the money they spend on these services in a more co-ordinated way. This could be working together to understand what people with mental health needs want from services, rather than asking people separately, or it might mean for example jointly contributing to a scheme to support people into employment.

Working together can help to reduce gaps between services – so that people don’t get passed from one place to another repeating their story each time. It can also mean that we make better use of public money by not planning services that don’t fit together.

The Joint Commissioning Team is made up of nurses, commissioners, administrators and contract managers who are all passionate about improving the mental health of local people. We work for Birmingham City Council and Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, as well as NHS Birmingham and Solihull.

See how we’ve been working in partnership to improve mental health services for people in Birmingham and Solihull by clicking on the image below.

Host Commissioning Responsibilities and Quality Assurance:

NHS England and NHS Improvement published Host Commissioner guidance in January 2021. This describes a clear expectation that as the local ICB we ensure that we have assurances and maintain effective quality surveillance of LDA independent hospitals within our geographical boundaries.  There are three LDA Independent Hospitals in the BSol area which support people with a learning disability and/or autism. These hospitals care for people who have been placed there by different Integrated Care Boards (ICBs). The Host Commissioner guidance relates specifically to the quality of care for people with a diagnosis of a Learning Disability and/or Autism.

 

At Birmingham and Solihull ICB, our role as Host Commissioner is to:

  • Work closely with colleagues within the ICB to maintain quality surveillance of our local Independent Hospitals for LDA.
  • Be the point of contact for all placing ICBs and the CQC in relation to quality assurance queries.
  • Collate intelligence and triangulate information to address any quality or safety issues.
  • To share and request intelligence across commissioners placing people in our area. 
  • Work closely with providers to develop actions that will deliver quality improvement.

 

Safeguarding

We work closely with our Local Authority Safeguarding Leads to share intelligence about any allegations of abuse or neglect. Should you have any safeguarding concerns or wish to make a safeguarding referral it will be your responsibility as the placing ICB to contact the Local Authority.

For any safeguarding concerns about an independent hospital in Birmingham and Solihull please contact:

Birmingham

Solihull

 

How to tell us about a concern:

Please contact us via our Host Commissioner inbox – bsmhft.mhldahostcommissioner@nhs.net

joint commissioning mental health infographic