DH overturns plans to remove shared boundaries

The Department of Health has overturned a number of strategic health authority proposals to remove shared boundaries between primary care trusts and councils in its final plans for PCT reform.

The DH rejected SHA proposals to create just four PCTs in the North East, removing nine coterminous arrangements, by backing an alternative plan to have 12 coterminous PCTs across the region.

And in the South West, it overturned plans to remove shared boundaries in Bath and North East Somerset, North Somerset, Swindon and South Gloucestershire.

Overall, the number of PCTs has been cut from 303 to 152, over 70 per cent of which will be coteriminous with councils.

However, in some areas the DH rejected SHA plans to introduce coterminosity, for instance by creating two PCTs to cover each of Cheshire and East Sussex.

The Local Government Association welcomed the changes. Community well-being board chair David Rogers said: “This announcement will make it far easier to provide more integrated services that are responsive to people’s needs.”