National Voices’ Conference on ICSs

On 23 June 2022, we held an all-day online national conference bringing together Voluntary Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) organisations, community groups and system leaders to strengthen our mutual commitment to better partnership. We delivered this conference in partnership with the Policy Innovation and Research Unit and with generous support from NHS England. 

Conference content

The event took place on the eve of Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) becoming statutory bodies and explored the ambition the NHS had for ICSs. It focused on how ICSs could embed a shift to a different relationship with communities to enable more holistic, inclusive and preventative approaches to health and care.  

Attendees had the opportunity to attend two out of seven workshops on the following topics: 

• Core20PLUS5 – shifting system perspectives and learning with communities at the heart of change 
• Exploring opportunities and challenges within ICS VCSE Alliances 
• Multi-disciplinary teams: how can we make them work in practice? 
• Changing lives, changing systems, changing places: making progress on social prescribing. 
• How the Voluntary Sector is helping deliver Population Health Management – opportunities and challenges 
• Lived Experience – learning with My Life Choices, Nottinghamshire ICS and National Voices 
• Exploring the long-term vision for the VCSE sector in Integrated Care 

Key speakers included Matthew Taylor, Chief Executive of NHS Confederation, Abdul Hamied, from the National Healthcare Inequalities Improvement Programme at NHS England, William Roberts, Director of Health Inequalities, Impact and Learning at Innovation Unit and Professor Robin Miller, Director of Global Engagement for College of Social Sciences from Birmingham University and Editor in Chief of the International Journal of Integrated Care. Two of our Lived Experience Partners also shared their unique insights into navigating the health system. 

Acknowledgements

We delivered this conference in partnership with the Policy Innovation and Research Unit and with generous support from NHS England.