New governance, assurance and understanding the NHS

Governance, assurance and understanding the NHS

The purpose of these resources is to outline relationships and governance in the NHS. The title is ambitious because the NHS is always evolving to better meet the needs of populations. The wider resources on this site will also add to your understanding whatever your role.

The NHS is a complex system, in it’s own right, with different organisations and sectors delivering care in concert and partnership. Through Integrated Care Systems, NHS organisations are also in partnership with local government, social care, voluntary, community and social enterprise organisations and private companies with the goal of better population health. NHS organisations also have varied accountabilities and relationships with Arm’s Lengths Bodies (ALBs), like NHS England and it’s regions, Local Authorities through Health Overview and Scrutiny committees. Robust governance enables organisations to understand and manage risk, plan for improvement and assure the board, stakeholders and the populations we serve that our organisations are safe and performing well.

It should be noted that the organisation’s statutory duties remain as these new ways of working develop.  We will continue to add resources that reflect how things are changing – and if you find a great resource we’ve missed please let us know.