---

Londonwide LMCs secures new assurance role for GP funding

Against a backdrop of enforced MPIG reductions and successive unworkable London Offers (see PMS Bulletin 9) we have been actively pushing the London NHS and Mayoral systems to support our policy to stabilise and sustain for long term general practice in London. Our Framework: Health and Wellbeing for London’s People has been fundamental to this approach. 

In an ever-changing NHS landscape comprising of Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) aligning across Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP) footprints; financial imperatives; delegated commissioning; the government’s PMS Review; the stop-start complexities of implementing the government’s GP Forward View (GPFV); and practice closures; we have secured recognition from commissioners of the need to ensure fairness, stability and sustainability for all forms of general practice. The London NHS system now accepts and will promote the fact that London’s general practice is the cornerstone of the NHS, and must be stabilised and sustained for the long term.

Londonwide LMCs regionally, and LMCs locally, will play a key City-wide role in assurance of GP funds, primary care and the impact of London's system decisions at local, STP and pan-London levels. In practice this ‘triple lock’ means that:

1. Local contracting decisions will be subject to a London single standard operating framework agreed between Londonwide LMCs and NHS England London. NHS England London that has agreed this approach with us and has made its implementation a key expectation of its CCGs and STPs. This should enable us to assure delegated CCG, STP and NHS England decisions through a transparent governance process in keeping with the purpose of the letter – to stabilise, sustain and transform for long term general practice in London.
2. The PMS Review will be subject to the same assurance process outlined above (PMS Bulletin 10 outlines further details).
3. As will the GPFV and other funding streams.

Through this mechanism we will assure that the core values and tenets of general practice within the Capital underpin decision-making across London’s NHS system – CCGs, STPs and NHS England London.

This approach will ensure that the PMS premium, GPFV, and other funds are invested in the fairest and best way to stabilise local practices and support longer term sustainability in the new STP-dominated environment.

Last updated : 14 Dec 2016

---