Since coming into office in May 2010 the Coalition Government have proposed reforms to health, social care and public health - areas which have significant implications for palliative and end of life care.

In summer 2010 Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS a White Paper on the future of the NHS was published, along with a series of related consultation documents. This was followed by a new vision for social care and a White Paper on improving public health in winter 2010. 

Each strategy was accompanied by an outcomes framework - for health, social care and public health.

Our response

To the orginal proposals

After in-depth discussion with our stakeholders, including professionals working across settings and people with experience of using services at the end of life, we submitted NCPC's response to the consultations. You can read an overview of our key points here:

NCPC Response to the government's health, social care and public health reforms: Key messages 

Our in-depth responses can be found below.

To the listening excerise

In April 2011 the Health Secretary Andrew Lansley announced that the Government would use the natural pause in the legislative journey between the Commons and the Lords to “pause, listen, reflect and improve” on the Health & Social Care Bill. 

David Cameron and Nick Clegg joined the Health Secretary at Downing Street a few days later to hear the views of voluntary sector leaders, including NCPC and Dying Matters coalition Chief Executive Eve Richardson. The government then announced that it had tasked former Royal College of General Practitioners Chair Professor Steve Field to chair the group of professionals called the NHS Future Forum to travel the country to hear the views of the public and professionals on the proposed changes.

We are pleased that Prof Steve Field's recommendations highlighted the urgent need to improve choice at the end of life. You can read our evidence to the NHS Future Forum here:

Part 1 (May 2011) | Part 2 (November 2011)

Detailed responses

Copies of our in-depth responses to particular aspects of the reforms can be found here:

• Response to White Paper on public health, Healthy Lives, Healthy People (submitted March 2011)

• Response to Liberating the NHS: Developing the Healthcare Workforce (submitted March 2011)

• Response to Transparency in outcomes: a framework for adult social care (submitted Feb 2011)

• Response to Greater Choice and Control (submitted Jan 2011)

  • Appendix 1
  • Appendix 2 (Ultimately Personal is available via the online library)
  • Appendix 3
   

• Response to Department of Health Business Plan: Consultation on the Transparency Section (submitted Jan 2011)

• Response to An Information Revolution (submitted Jan 2011)

• NCPC's overarching response to the NHS reforms  (Oct 2010) 

• Response to Liberating the NHS: Commissioning for patients (submitted Oct 2010) 

• Response to Transparency in outcomes - a framework for the NHS (submitted Oct 2010) 

• Response to Liberating the NHS: increasing democratic legitimacy in health (submitted Oct 2010)