Public sector collaboration: Building a healthier, more connected future

The public sector landscape continues to change day-to-day. For those of us embedded and passionate about this sector, it can feel disconcerting. However, the public sector is no stranger to uncertainty and big challenges. As always, we must focus on opportunities – such as challenging the status quo and helping our stakeholders innovate – and we have to work together as a “system”. No organisation can handle this alone.

For leaders across the North West, this is a pivotal moment to champion partnerships, foster grassroots engagement, and embed system working to make the sustainable changes that will be required of us in the very near future.

The North West Learning and Development Collaborative, a partnership encompassing North West Employers, the NHS North West Leadership Academy, the NHS Clinical Leadership Network (NHS CLN), Health Innovation North West Coast, AQUA, and MIAA, believes that collaborative working is the cornerstone of building resilient public services.

Why collaborate?

The NHS and local government are community anchors, shaping lives and driving regional growth. Siloed decision-making leads to inefficiencies and fragmented care. We need to break down barriers to deliver better outcomes. Some of the ways the Collaborative can support, include:

Foster grassroots engagement

Change must be co-created with those it affects. Grassroots engagement ensures that frontline staff, patients, carers, and communities have a voice in shaping services.

There are a number of ways you can do this, including: investing in listening exercises to understand the unique needs of local populations and frontline teams; facilitating co-design workshops to empower staff and communities; and promote open communication channels to capture feedback and ideas continuously. A recent, compelling example of this approach is the NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICS’s initiatives to tackle fuel poverty.

Build partnerships across sectors

Our integrated care system (ICS) requires that we collaborate beyond our organisational boundaries. Local authorities, healthcare providers, voluntary organisations, and private sector partners all have a role. Leaders should champion shared goals and metrics that reflect collective success.

Read about the St Helens People’s Board establishing a shared vision and responsibility to manage demand; reduce costs and improve local health and care outcomes through St Helens Cares.

Strengthen workforce resilience

The public sector’s workforce is the backbone of our services. Supporting wellbeing (e.g., mental health support and flexible working) and professional development is key to sustainable systems working and thriving local economies.

Look at an implementation toolkit resulting from a co-produced wellbeing and attendance management policy with staff at Northern Care Alliance, Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHSFT and UNISON.

Embed a culture of learning and adaptation

Collaboration thrives where learning is continuous and innovation is encouraged. Leaders must create cultures that embrace experimentation and adaptation. The North West Collaborative Masterclasses, hosted by the North West Learning and Development Collaborative and ADASS, are regular events that: promote the formation of knowledge-sharing networks to disseminate best practices across sectors, showcase best practice and their impact across the north west, create a space for leaders to share and sound out new ideas.

Leading the charge for a collaborative future

The UK’s changing political and financial landscape offers a unique opportunity for public sector leaders to reimagine how we work together.

The North West Learning and Development Collaborative represents the pooling of regional expertise and resources into a better-for-all model. Contact me for a discussion on how the collaborative can support your organisation or the integrated care system on the North West Coast.