City & Hackney Integrated Primary Care C.I.C.

City & Hackney Integrated Primary Care (“IPC”) was set up in July 2014 as a Community Interest Company (CIC) under the name City and Hackney GP Confederation with a membership of all GP practices in City and Hackney, with a total registered patient list size of 345,602 (as at 1 October 2023) and increasing to 353,888 (by March 31 2025) a 2.4% increase. The company is a not-for-profit organisation in which each of the GP practices in City and Hackney are equal shareholders. Each of the practices pays an annual membership fee (£1.02 per patient) to the IPC based on the size of their registered patient list. Since its inception, the total number of practices has reduced from 43 to 37, but there has been no corresponding decrease in patient list size overall, or in income to the IPC as a result. List sizes have continued to increase, which has resulted in GP Practices merging to bolster resilience and care. On the 1st of August 2024, City and Hackney GP Confederation and City and Hackney Office of PCNs finalized the Business Transfer (“merger”), that was one of the primary objectives of this fiscal year, transferring all the support services to Primary Care Networks within City and Hackney to the newly named City & Hackney Integrated Primary Care CIC. From a legal perspective the Articles of Association and framework of the Confederation were used to form City and Hackney Integrated Primary Care. This transfer merged both prior organisations, bolstered the Board of Directors Membership and increased primary care resilience for City and Hackney. Working more closely with our eight local Primary Care Networks (PCNs), which used to operate together under the umbrella company, the Office of PCNs Ltd, (OoPCNs) will provide a stronger voice for primary care in the local health economy, ensure a successful response to the re-procurement of the contact for enhanced primary care services from the ICB, and provide opportunities for efficiencies and economies of scale. The eight Primary Care Networks (PCNs) were established in City & Hackney in July 2019, they make up groupings of GP Practices within City and Hackney, and are divided into neighbourhoods or areas. The funding for these networks primarily comes from the Network DES contract that is held between each PCN and the local Integrated Care Board. The IPC is compensated for providing support such as, but not limited to Human Resources, Finance, Contract Performance and Procurement services. The purpose of the IPC is to support member GP practices, either directly through practices or through PCNs to improve quality, resilience and stability in primary care, and to develop innovative, cost-effective services that respond to the needs of local people. As the NHS 10 Year Health Plan for England highlights that neighbourhood models (such as PCNs) for providing care are the preferred method of healthcare treatment, thus moving to a preventative healthcare system rather than reactive (such as secondary care or tertiary care), our organisation finds itself in a stronger position for resilience and future proofing. The IPC’s Clinical Board (the Board) is made up of eight PCN Clinical Directors that are GPs, elected by their peers, a Chair, an elected Practice Manager, an elected Practice Nurse, one Audit Chair, and an appointed Chief Executive Officer, Deputy Chief Financial Officer, Director of Clinical Practice and a Medical Director. All the Board members, except the Lay Members, are directors of the company, i.e., the expected number of directors is 16. There are other Lay Members that can be appointed to but have not been appointed. Over the past 18 months the IPC was commissioned by City & Hackney Integrated Care Board, (ICB), formerly the Clinical Commissioning Group, The Homerton University Hospital Trust and the London Borough of Hackney to deliver on a number of enhanced primary care contracts, which it delivered by sub-contracting with its member practices and supporting practices and PCNs to deliver the contract requirements. The IPC continued to provide a Doorstep Assessment Service (DAS), and a care settings infection control service to December 2023, which were first established as part of the response to the coronavirus pandemic. The IPC also directly provided a Stop Smoking service commissioned by the London Borough of Hackney. During this period, the City and Hackney Training Hub which forms part of the North East London Training Hub was further bolstered by funding and a stronger push from NHS England on scaling training for primary care. As the fund holder for City and Hackney and hosting the Development team the IPC supported further training initiatives that were later used at other Places (Boroughs). Extensive work, negotiations, and cost was invested into Transferring the Business of the OoPCNs to the IPC during this period. The efforts were fruitful on the 1st of August when City and Hackney Integrated Primary Care was founded. The Strategic Report will highlight efficiencies and improvements from this Business Transfer. The expenses incurred on business transfer were funded by Integrated Care partners totalling £95,000, the rest being paid internally. While the cost was steep, the fact the IPC was able to self-fund more than 50% is proof of its financial resilience. A summary of the IPC’s key achievements during the last 12 months of operation is reported in the Strategic Report.