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The £5.3 billion Better Care Fund (the Fund) was introduced as an opportunity to transform local health and social care services by pooling resources to stimulate closer joint working and innovation for the benefit of local populations and the taxpayer. The initial planning for the Fund was deeply flawed. The Department of Health and the Department for Communities and Local Government (the Departments), and NHS England changed the rules in the middle of the planning phase, after failing to tell planners they needed to identify £1 billion in savings. As a result, all 151 health and wellbeing boards had to submit revised plans resulting in wasted time, effort and money. Local areas are now at greater risk of not being able to implement the policy. The scale of the challenge facing local government and the NHS is growing as demand for health and care services increases. We are concerned that the new focus on reducing emergency admissions and making savings will significantly increase pressure in adult social care services.
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