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UHUK Urges ICBs to Reconsider Cuts to VCSE Sector Funding Amidst Rising Demand for Community-Based Care
28 January, 2025Author: Sharon Clifton
Urgent Health UK (UHUK), the representative body for social enterprise providers of urgent and integrated care covering two-thirds of the UK population, is calling on Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) to recognise the exceptional value provided by the VCSE sector to enable and support the core NHS aims of serving the health and wellbeing of people in the community. Without VCSE support, more care will be needed from more expensive NHS providers, significantly negating any potential savings and adding to system pressures.
New analysis from HSJ reveals that nearly half of all ICBs plan to reduce their VCSE spend in this financial year, despite national commitments to shift care into communities and focus on prevention. Some areas face reductions of up to 17%, placing essential primary and community healthcare services at risk....
Read moreUHUK response to the NHS Change consultation on the 10-year health plan
12 December, 2024Author: Sharon Clifton
In submitting its response to the consultation on the NHS 10-year plan, UHUK is urging the government to grasp this opportunity to fundamentally transform how care is delivered and received across the UK, embracing the mission-driven principles of social enterprise organisations to create an NHS which is equitable, sustainable, and truly patient centred.
UHUK CEO Conor Burke said: "Our members provide digitally enabled services covering two-thirds of the UK population. They provide neighbourhood services out-of-hospital, in the home and in the community, and are at the very heart of what the Darzi diagnostic is trying to achieve. ...
Read moreUrgent Health UK warns of severe impact from budget decisions on social enterprise NHS urgent healthcare providers
11 December, 2024Author: Sharon Clifton
Urgent Health UK (UHUK), representing social enterprise organisations providing urgent, integrated, out-of-hours and out-of-hospital care to 70% of the UK population on behalf of the NHS, has issued a stark warning following the Autumn Budget. The increases to employer National Insurance Contributions (ENIC) and the National Living Wage could have devastating financial consequences for its members.
For individual UHUK members, the financial impact is projected to range from £80k to £3m in the first year alone, with an average increase of nearly £0.5m per organisation. As social enterprises, UHUK members operate with minimal surpluses or on a break-even basis, leaving no capacity to absorb these additional...
Read moreExcellence celebrated at UHUK Annual Conference and Awards Ceremony 2024
19 November, 2024Author: Sharon Clifton
Held in Bedford at the Wyboston Lakes Resort, the 2024 annual conference and awards ceremony was quite possibly our best yet.
The conference saw over 120 healthcare professionals come together to explore the topic of how we sustain the NHS through remote, virtual and digital healthcare. Keynote speakers included Prof Julian Redhead, Prof Trish Greenhalgh (pictured above), Prof Durka Dougall, Jack Sansum, Rebecca Seeley Harris, Imogen Levy and Lucy Marsden, Dr...
Read moreUHUK response to the 2024 UK budget announcement
31 October, 2024Author: Sharon Clifton
Urgent Health UK (UHUK) welcomes the government’s focus on healthcare in this year’s budget. As a network of social enterprises delivering urgent, integrated, and out-of-hospital care for two-thirds of the UK population, UHUK is uniquely positioned to support the anticipated ten-year plan and the key shifts identified in the Darzi review that will shape the future of healthcare.
Today’s announcement of a £25.7 billion investment in the NHS over this year and next is both timely and essential. Of this, £3.1 billion is allocated for capital investment in NHS estates and infrastructure, while £22.6 billion supports the NHS's day-to-day budget. These funds, alongside measures targeting wider health determinants—such...
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