Working Together Across Essex

As an Integrated Care System we collectively continue to strengthen relationships with the other two Integrated Care Systems working that relate to the county of Essex:

Hertfordshire and West Essex ICS.
Mid and South Essex ICS

Where it is appropriate and adds value, we will work with our neighbours, particularly across the whole Essex footprint, where there is learning that can be shared or innovation which can be jointly developed, but also to ensure consistency of experience and outcomes for our residents.

Essex County Council is also committed to working with the three ICS systems that they relate to for the benefit of the whole Essex population. As such the council aims to maximise collaboration not only within each ICS, but also – where appropriate – between the three ICS’s.

Consistent Place-based Alliance Working Across Essex

All three ICSs across Essex are committed to the development of place-based Alliances and these are now developing across Essex with a total of five Alliances now at varying stages of development. This includes the North East Essex Alliance which now has a sub-committee of the NHS ICB with an Alliance Director and Non-Executive Member reporting jointly to the County Council, NHS ICB and local District and Borough Councils. Joint governance arrangements for the Alliance continue to develop in line with proposals in the recent Integration White Paper.

Cross Essex Planning and Co-ordination of Delivery

Suffolk and North East Essex ICS is committed to working with both Mid and South Essex ICS and Hertfordshire and West Essex ICS to develop a mechanism for aligning plans to enable an identifiable and extractable ‘Essex Plan’ that supports development of strategic plans for adult social care, children’s social care and public health.

North East Essex Alliance, NHS Suffolk and North East Essex ICB and Suffolk and North East Essex ICP are committed to coming together with colleagues from other ICS areas to discuss and share commissioning intentions across alliances and across ICS systems so opportunities for better value and better outcomes can be identified. This includes the existing pan-Essex cross-system commissioning of services such as Learning Disabilities, Mental Health and CAMHS, which continue. The importance of cross Essex working has also been considered as part of the development of arrangements for population health management and cross-system data and analytics and we recognise the contribution of the Essex Centre for Data Analytics (with the University of Essex) to this.

Across Essex there are many partnership boards and forums with work programmes linked to the wider determinants of health, from Safer Essex to the Children’s Partnership, to the Essex Housing Officers Group, to place based partnerships including One Colchester and Tendring Together. Through the connections we have developed with the Health and Wellbeing Board and Essex Partners we will be able to connect into, inform, and support the strategies and work programmes of these boards as required. The Suffolk and North East Essex ICS will operate with and alongside these established partnerships and forums operating at a place; countywide; as well as across the wider Southend, Essex and Thurrock footprint. These connections will help us avoid duplication of efforts and maximise the benefits of the work for local residents