Health scheme on brink of collapse

Exclusive: Gerry Braiden

Published on 29 Apr 2010

Glasgow’s pioneering model of merging social work and frontline healthcare to save hundreds of millions of pounds is on the verge of collapse, The Herald can reveal.

The future of the groundbreaking community health care partnership (CHCP) system, often cited as a model for the rest of Scotland, has been thrown into doubt after the reluctance of the city council to commit to £400 million up front despite an agreement from last year.

The council wants its contribution, which would be added to a £490m share from the health service, paid in stages and will agree to this approach at its executive committee tomorrow.

However, the authority has been told by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde that this could make the CHCP plans “unworkable”.

A senior CHCP source said: “I believe there’s now a serious threat that the whole thing could break down and be disbanded.”

The Herald also understands the involvement of individual NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde managers within the CHCP is a factor in the council’s reluctance to fully devolve the £400m from its social work budget. The move was due to take place on April 1 and would have seen hundreds of staff transfer from the council.

The threat to the CHCPs comes on the back of several years of cultural clashes between the health board and council and is the culmination of 18 months of wrangling between both agencies.

A council spokesman said: “We believe a step-by-step approach is the best way forward for the council and the partnership board.”

An NHS GGC spokesman said: “The council’s report recommends a different way forward for CHCPs, developed independently by the council, which the NHS Board has not yet formally considered.

“The recommendation does not reflect the agreement reached in November 2009.”

Glasgow’s CHCPs were cited in the recent report by Sir John Arbuthnott on how the public purse could save millions of pounds by closer working, with councils in the west of Scotland looking to adopt the model to ease future budgetary pressures.