Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether NHS England has set formal (a) criteria and (b) guidance on the key functions Integrated Care Boards will be expected to provide under the proposed cost envelope.

NHS England has asked integrated care boards (ICBs) to act primarily as strategic commissioners of health and care services and to reduce the duplication of responsibilities within their structure with the expectation of achieving a reduction in their running cost allowance. NHS England provided additional guidance to ICBs, National Health Service trusts, and NHS foundation trusts in a letter on 1 April 2025. This letter is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/working-together-in-2025-26-to-lay-the-foundations-for-reform/

NHS England has circulated the document, Model Integrated Care Board – Blueprint v1.0, to all ICBs to assist them in shaping their plans. The document identifies the functional changes that ICBs will have to manage and indicates the responsibilities they may look to grow, adapt, or review for transfer, including the functions and activities that might be safely transferred to other parts of the system over time, such as national bodies, regional teams, or providers.

NHS England’s transformation team will continue to work with ICBs to develop their plans, including how the key functions will be delivered within the revised running cost allocations, ensuring a focus on delivering NHS statutory functions in line with the legislation.