Tag: nhs england

Invitation to attend a roundtable discussion on future vaccination strategy

Age UK and the NHS are hosting a roundtable discussion on future vaccination strategy on Friday 23rd September from 2:00 – 3:30pm. Find out full details.

Age UK and the NHS are pleased to invite you to attend a joint roundtable discussion on future vaccination strategy. The event will be held online on Friday 23rd September from 2:00 – 3:30pm. Chaired by Ruthe Isden, Age UK’s Head of Health Influencing, the event will also include opening remarks from Steve Russell, NHS National Director for Vaccination and will include a question and answer segment.

The objective of the roundtable is to help understand and improve the strategy work and thinking behind the NHS vaccination programme, including what the priorities should be going forward.

This session comes shortly after the NHS launched their autumn booster campaign. The discussion session with NHS England staff will provide the opportunity to share what you think is important to prioritise and consider, given your work in your local area and system, and your thoughts on what will work for older people who are frequently part of routine vaccinations.

Please get in touch with HealthInfluencing@ageuk.org.uk for further details and to let us know if you would like to attend.

Chance to get involved in NHS England medicines programme

NHS England has set up a new national programme to tackle problematic polypharmacy. If you organisation would like to get involved, you can find all the details here.

Age UK is supporting a new national programme funded by NHS England to help tackle problematic polypharmacy, i.e. where people are taking more medicines than they need or are likely causing them harm. Local Age UKs are invited to get involved with the programme by joining a local Community of Practice and/or collaborating with a local NHS group to support the testing of public-facing materials.

If you would like to hear more or get involved, please contact Amy Semple,  National Programme Manager at a.semple@nhs.net. You can also get in touch with Age UK’s Health and Care Policy Lead Tom Gentry at tom.gentry@ageuk.org.uk.

Update: NHSE Seasonal Surge Support Tender

An update on the NHS England Seasonal Support Tender. Find out how we’re partnering with British Red Cross for this opportunity and how Brand Partners can be involved.

Age UK has partnered with British Red Cross to bid for the NHSE Seasonal Surge Support contract to support patient flow through provision of hospital discharge and community out of hospital wrap around care. You can find out more below about how Brand Partners can be involved, including contact details for any questions you may have at this stage. Due to procurement rules, we are restricted in how much we can say about the tender and the submission at this time, however we will keep you regularly updated about the outcome, which is expected by the 25th of October.

Procurement conditions for this tender required either a single provider or a consortium to have a lead provider. Factoring the ‘all age’ element and other compliance requirements, it was agreed between the partners that British Red Cross would be the lead who, if successful, would sub-contract Age UK and Brand Partners to deliver the contract. Age UK proposes to act as a form of agent on behalf of the lead provider and Brand Partners to support both mobilisation and delivery during the contract period. The plan is to harness the capacity of as many Brand Partners who are willing, along with other voluntary sector providers, to respond to surge demand when and where it presents during the year(s).

In assessing the opportunity, both organisations realised we are stronger together and have a greater competitive edge by presenting a support offer that brings together our collective expertise, capabilities, and resources more effectively to make an even greater difference.

Age UK and British Red Cross have had a close working relationship supporting the NHS over the last three years of winter pressures and during the pandemic. This successful collaboration has helped tens of thousands of people across the country to have safe and supported discharge from hospital and assistance to recover at home, along with out-of-hospital support to prevent admission or readmission. Our aim is to use this contract opportunity to build a longer-term partnership between our organisations to leverage more opportunities, whether procurement driven or innovation led. Such a partnership should help our organisations to achieve our respective and collective purpose to help people recover from crisis and to support older people to achieve and maintain their independence and wellbeing.

For Brand Partners, we hope that this opportunity and partnership presents real benefits, not least the ability to scale your services and solutions to those most in need, tackle health inequalities, gain additional funding for prevention, and demonstrate to local and regional NHS systems the strategic imperative and value of your capacity and provision. 

Due to procurement rules, we are restricted in how much we can say about the tender and the submission at this time. However, we will keep you regularly updated about the tender outcome (expected by the 25th of October) and developments of our partnership with British Red Cross.

If you have and questions or considerations you wish to raise, please don’t hesitate to contact the team at john.mason@ageuk.org.uk or lauren.chalk@ageuk.org.uk.

Influencing Conference 2021 – Final Call For Registration

With less than a week to go until this year’s Virtual Influencing Conference, find out all the details, including how to book your place for Wednesday 13th October.

The annual Age UK Influencing Conference is less than a week away, taking place online on 13th October from 10am until 3pm. Registration closes on 12th October at 12pm. You can register to attend and choose your workshop here or find out more information below. We welcome multiple attendees from the same local Age UK.

The conference is a gathering of staff and trustees from local partners across the Age UK network, providing the opportunity to discuss how we can best work together to influence decision makers both at the local and national level, to share ideas and celebrate our successes.

This year’s conference will focus on the Government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda. We will be joined by Dr Gemma Tetlow of the Institute For Government, to discuss what this means for older people, and Dr Bola Owolabi from NHS England, to discuss how to respond to the impact of the pandemic on health inequalities for older people. You can see the full agenda, including workshops and panels, below.

Agenda:

Welcome and housekeeping 10:00 – 10:05

Nicola Upton, Age UK Sutton

Opening Remarks 10:10 – 10:15

Caroline Abrahams CBE, Charity Director, Age UK

Opening Plenary 10:15 – 11:00

What does ‘levelling up’ mean for older people?

Dr Gemma Tetlow, Chief Economist, Institute For Government
Caroline Abrahams CBE, Charity Director, Age UK

BREAK 11:00 – 11:15
Workshops 11:15  – 12:00

Workshop A: Age Friendly Places

Alex Hayes, National Lottery Community Fund
Carly Urbanski, Age UK Bristol

Workshop B: Addressing inequalities for older people in our communities

Jonathon Prasad, Lancashire BME Network
Anne Oliver, Age UK Lancashire

Workshop C: Moving Forward with Digital Inclusion

Graham Gardiner, Chief Executive, Age UK Lambeth
John McGeachy, Senior Campaigns Officer, Age UK London

LUNCH 12:00 – 13:00
Plenary 13:00 – 13:45

Responding to the impact of the pandemic on health and wellbeing.

Dr Bola Owolabi, Director – Health Inequalities, NHS England
Caroline Abrahams, Charity Director, Age UK

BREAK 13:45 – 14:00
Panel discussion 14:00 – 14:50

How can local Age UKs influence the local levelling up agenda?

Dale Maskell, Chief Executive, Age UK Cheshire
Dr Elizabeth Webb, Head of Research, Age UK
Nicola Upton, Chief Executive, Age UK Sutton

Closing remarks 14:50 – 15:00

Abi Wood, Chief Executive, Age UK London

Register on Eventbrite

Age UK Influencing Conference 2021 – Agenda Announced

The agenda for this year’s Virtual Influencing Conference is now available! Find out more, including how to book your place for this year’s event on Wednesday 13th October.

The annual Age UK Influencing Conference takes place online on Wednesday 13th October from 10am – 3pm and details for the agenda are now available. This year, colleagues from across the network of local partners will join together to discuss the Government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda and what this means for older people. The conference is open to all relevant staff members and trustees of local Age UK charities and we welcome multiple attendees from the same local Age UK. Take a look at the agenda below or register on Eventbrite to attend the conference.

We are incredibly excited to be joined by Dr Bola Owolabi, Director – Health Inequalities at NHS England, to discuss the impact of the pandemic on health and social care and health inequalities for older people. We will also be joined by Dr Gemma Tetlow, Chief Economist at Institute for Government, to discuss the Government’s levelling up agenda and what opportunities this presents for older people.

Agenda:

Welcome and housekeeping 10:00 – 10:05

Abi Wood, Age UK London
Nicola Upton, Age UK Sutton

Opening Remarks 10:10 – 10:15

Caroline Abrahams, Charity Director, Age UK

Opening Plenary 10:15 – 11:00

What does ‘levelling up’ mean for older people?

Dr Gemma Tetlow, Chief Economist, Institute For Government

BREAK 11:00 – 11:15
Workshops 11:15  – 12:00

Workshop A: Age Friendly Places

National Lottery Community Fund
A local Age UK representative

Workshop B: Addressing inequalities for older people in our communities

Jonathon Prasad, Lancashire BME Network
Anne Oliver, Age UK Lancashire

Workshop C: Moving Forward with Digital Inclusion

Age UK Lambeth
Local Age UK Representatives TBC

LUNCH 12:00 – 13:00
Plenary 13:00 – 13:45

Responding to the impact of the pandemic on health and wellbeing.

Dr Bola Owolabi, Director – Health Inequalities, NHS England
Caroline Abrahams, Charity Director, Age UK

BREAK 13:45 – 14:00
Panel discussion 14:00 – 14:50

How can local Age UKs influence the local levelling up agenda?

Local Age UK Representatives TBC

Closing remarks 14:50 – 15:00

Abi Wood & Nicola Upton

Register on Eventbrite

Virtual Influencing Conference 2021 – Sign Up Now!

Registration for this year’s Virtual Influencing Conference is now open. Find out how to book your place for this year’s event on Wednesday 13th October.

Registration for the virtual Age UK Influencing Conference 2021 on Wednesday 13th October is now open! Please secure your free tickets via the Eventbrite page. Following the success of last year’s Influencing Conference, this year the conference will once again take place online, from 10am until 3pm. We can’t wait to host colleagues from across the network to learn from each other about local and national influencing and the important work happening across the country.

This year’s conference will focus on the government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda, with guest speakers discussing what this means for older people. We are also incredibly excited to be joined by Dr Bola Owolabi, GP and Director of Health Inequalities at NHS England, to hear about the impact of the pandemic and the consequences for health and social care, health inequalities and how local partners might support the health and wellbeing of older people.

When securing your ticket, do not forget to select one of the three options of workshops you would like to attend too.

The conference is open to all staff, volunteers and Trustees from across the network and we encourage multiple attendees from the same local Age UK.

Please contact luke.pilot@ageuk.org.uk with any queries.

NHSEI seasonal pressures bid: Tender readiness survey deadline extended

In preparation to bid for the NHSEI seasonal surge capacity tender, we have developed a survey to help us gauge the scale of capacity and provision available. The survey deadline has been extended to 27th August.

A notice to all England-based brand partners that the deadline for our tender readiness survey has been extended until Friday the 27th of August, noon. Thank you to everyone who has completed the survey so far. You can find full details about the tender below, including the link to the survey and a reference copy.

Last week, we alerted England-based brand partners to the exciting opportunity presented by the NHS England and Improvement (NHSEI) procurement for long term seasonal pressures support. This future contract seeks a national provider to respond to surges in demand when they occur throughout the year, with a particular focus on supporting Hospital Discharge (Pathway 0) and community out of hospital wrap around care. Specifically, NHSEI are seeking capacity that: responds to urgent system demand; reduces unnecessary admissions and re-admissions; improves system flow and discharge; increases engagement and choice; supports reablement; and increases independence.

We know the window for bidding will be extremely tight, so in preparation, we have developed a survey to gather information from brand partners in England to help us assess the scale of capacity and provision available across the seven NHS regions. Find full details below, including the link to the survey and a reference copy.

Click here to complete the survey

Reference Copy of the Survey

We use MS Forms to capture survey information. Unfortunately, MS Forms does not permit you to save semi completed responses. You must complete the survey in one go. We therefore advise that you download the reference document below and familiarise yourself with the survey questions before attempting to complete the MS Forms version of the survey.

NHSEI Seasonal Surge Capacity Tender Survey – Reference CopyDownload

NHSEI seasonal surge capacity tender: Bid development survey now live for England-based brand partners

In preparation to bid for the NHSEI seasonal surge capacity tender, we have developed a survey to help us gauge the scale of capacity and provision available. Find out how you can complete the survey below.

Last week we alerted England-based brand partners to the exciting opportunity presented by the NHS England and Improvement (NHSEI) procurement for long term seasonal surge capacity and support. We know the window for bidding will be extremely tight, so in preparation, we have developed a survey to gather information from brand partners in England to help us assess the scale of capacity and provision available across the seven NHS regions. The survey runs from Tuesday 10th of August until midday on Friday 20th of August. Find full details below, including the link to the survey and a reference copy.

This future contract seeks a national provider to respond to surges in demand when they occur throughout the year, with a particular focus on supporting Hospital Discharge (Pathway 0) and community out of hospital wrap around care. Specifically, NHSEI are seeking capacity that responds to urgent system demand, reduces unnecessary admissions and re-admissions, improves system flow and discharge, increases engagement and choice, reablement and increases independence.

Completing the survey

Age UK expects to submit a bid subject to the full tender pack’s release and a fuller understanding of the funder’s requirements. We know the window for bidding will be extremely tight and in preparation we have developed a survey to help us quickly gather information from brand partners in England to help us assess the scale of capacity and provision available across the seven NHS regions. This is also an opportunity for brand partner to express an early interest in working with Age UK who, if successful, intends to sub-contract brand partners to the framework.

Please only complete the survey if you can offer capacity and support that can quickly mobilise if called-upon and is built on existing services and activity, rather than setting up new activity. The survey covers 5 themes: About your organisation; Your model of delivery; Operational information; Impact; and Mobilisation.

Where possible, we’ve given tick box options and estimate that the survey takes about 20 to 25 minutes to complete. The survey runs from Tuesday 10th of August until midday on Friday 20th of August.

Click here to complete the survey

Reference Copy of the Survey

We use MS Forms to capture survey information. Unfortunately, MS Forms does not permit you to save semi completed responses. You must complete the survey in one go. We therefore advise that you download the reference document below and familiarise yourself with the survey questions before attempting to complete the MS Forms version of the survey.

NHSEI Seasonal Surge Capacity Tender Survey – Reference CopyDownload

Webinar Recording: The Future of the Health and Care System

View the recording of a recent webinar from Age UK’s Health Influencing team which looks at the White Paper on Health and Social Care.

The Health Influencing Team recently held a webinar which looked at the Government’s White Paper which sets out changes to the way the Health and Care System will operate in England. This webinar looked at what these changes are, why they are happening and what opportunities there may be for Age UK Network and the wider VCSE. You can view a recording of the webinar here or read on for more information.

The speakers in the webinar include:

  • Ruthe Isden, Head of Health Influencing on the White Paper
  • Nicola Upton, CEO Age UK Sutton on their experiences of working within their local health and care system
  • Roger Davidson, Director of System Transformation at NHS England on how it will work.

If you missed the webinar but would like to catch up you can find a recording here.

For any further information or questions please get in touch with healthinfluencing@ageuk.org.uk

The impact of Covid-19 on older people – new research findings to be released soon

Age UK is updating its research on the impact of Covid-19 on older people. These findings will be released in April, along with a webinar to discuss the research.

Age UK is currently updating its research on the impact of Covid-19 on older people. Building on our previous survey, we’ve included more questions about social care and carers. We’ve also done more to understand the impact of ethnicity and sexuality on the findings and have undertaken in-depth interviews, increased our polling and boosted the response rate to ensure our report represents a wider diversity of older people.

We will publish our report in April but if you would like to know any of the key findings in the meantime to support your funding bids, planning and local influencing, please contact healthinfluencing@ageuk.org.uk and we will try to accommodate. We also plan to run a webinar in April to discuss the findings and also hope to be joined by someone from NHS England – giving some context for how the findings can be used in planning / prioritising services and positioning our organisations.

We are also soon to publish additional research findings on health inequalities on older people from certain groups in rural and coastal communities; and some work looking at the health and care experiences of the most socially excluded older people (homeless people, ex offenders etc).