NHS England offers positive assessment of NHS North West London after first full year

NHS North West London is the Integrated Care Board (ICB) covering Brent, Ealing, Hammersmith and Fulham, Harrow, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster. We work with people who live and work in North West London to plan and improve health and care services. We have an annual budget of £6 billion and serve a diverse population of 2.1m residents. We are here to help local people live healthier lives, improve the quality of healthcare, tackle inequalities and make sure the NHS makes best use of resources.  More information about the role of the ICB is available here.

All ICBs are subject to an annual assessment of their performance by NHS England. In a positive assessment, NHS England recognises a number of achievements by NHS North West London, including development of a health and care strategy for the area, a commitment to involving local people in our work, successful financial management and meeting national targets for urgent and emergency care. The full assessment is published on the ICB website.

Dr Penny Dash, Chair of NHS North West London, welcomed the assessment:

“This is a very positive overall assessment following our first full year and we should be proud of our achievements. I do want to thank partners across the system for the way we have worked together to make tangible improvements.

“At the same time, we have to recognise we are not where we want to be. Patients are too often waiting too long for the care they need, whether in A&E, general practice or for planned operations and procedures – and some of these waits have increased. We still have too many patients stuck in hospital when they do not need to be there. There are still big variations in the quality of care provided across our health and care system.  And we need to do far more to prevent ill health from happening in the first place.

“This assessment is fair and positive, but we all recognise there is much more work to be done.”

Rob Hurd, Chief Executive of NHS North West London, added:

“It is good that we are on the right track in so many areas, though we do recognise the hard work is only just beginning. It has been a challenging year for the ICB, including a substantial staffing reorganisation which I know has been unsettling and difficult for our staff. I want to thank them for their hard work, patience and commitment on behalf of the residents and communities we serve.”

You can read the assessment here