The Gloucestershire Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee met on 18 November 2025, receiving updates on the Integrated Urgent Care Service, the NHS Gloucestershire 5 Year Strategy, and the performance of the Gloucestershire Integrated Care System. The committee also discussed and agreed to note the proposed temporary service changes outlined in the Integrated Care Board report, while raising concerns about the potential for these changes to become permanent.

NHS Gloucestershire 5 Year Strategy

The committee received a presentation on the NHS Gloucestershire 5 Year Strategic Plan from Sarah Truelove, Chief Executive Officer of NHS Gloucestershire, and Dr Emma Crutchlow, GP Collaborative NHS Gloucestershire ICB. The plan is based around three shifts:

• Hospital to community
• Analogue to digital
• Sickness to prevention

The strategy takes into account population segmentation data for Gloucestershire, which indicates that almost 75% of the population are in low need groups (healthy), 23% are living in moderate need (stable chronic conditions), and 3% have complex care needs. It also notes that dynamic population modelling shows a 47% increase in the frailty group by 2040, which is the segment that consumes the most health and care resources.

The plan is being developed with engagement from people and communities, including an online survey, community events, and targeted engagement with specific communities. The committee will receive further presentations on the three areas of the plan at its January and March 2026 meetings.

Integrated Urgent Care Service (IUCS) Update

Sharon Buckley, Deputy Chief Operating Officer for the Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust, provided an update on the Integrated Urgent Care Service (IUCS). The new IUCS launched on 19 November 2024, bringing together the NHS 111 service¹, the Senior GP Led Clinical Assessment Service, and the Primary Care Out of Hours Service. Key achievements in the first year included:

• Handling 192,900 NHS 111 calls and 7,961 111 online cases.
• Clinically assessing 79,775 patients via the Clinical Assessment Service (CAS).
• Completing 2,008 home visits and 16,035 out-of-hours appointments.

The service is delivered in partnership with IC24, a not-for-profit social enterprise that provides call handling functions for NHS 111 and remote GPs for the Clinical Assessment Service.

Performance headlines included improved call handling times for NHS 111 and exceeding key targets for Emergency Department and Ambulance validation. A focus area for improvement is clinician call back times to meet national IUCS standards. Work is also ongoing to improve the accuracy of the Directory of Services (DoS).

The IUCS operates 24/7, 365 days a year across Gloucestershire, with GP out-of-hours appointments delivered across five treatment centres. 120 staff across the service are managed from Edward Jenner Court, Brockworth, Gloucester.

Challenges and learning points included workforce recruitment, managing system pressures and demand peaks, and developing stronger integration with community teams.

Gloucestershire Integrated Care System (GICS) Performance Report

The committee received an update on the performance of the Gloucestershire Integrated Care System (GICS) against NHS constitutional and other agreed standards. Key achievements included improvements in ambulance handover delays and urological prostate cancer wait times. Areas of focus included elective performance, echocardiography performance, and community speech and language therapy (SALT) waiting times.

In primary care, 340,775 appointments were delivered in general practice in August 2025, exceeding operational plan commitments. The Autumn COVID-19 booster programme has commenced, and a new contract has been published with additional funding for practices nationally.

In dentistry, Gloucestershire is delivering 79% of commissioned Units of Dental Activity (UDA), and expansion in urgent dental care appointments is underway. The ICB and GCC are continuing collaborative development of the Gloucester City Dental Access Centre, which will comprise seven treatment rooms at Quayside House.

NHS Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board (ICB) Report

The committee considered a report from the NHS Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board (ICB), which included updates from Integrated Care System (ICS) partners responsible for overseeing the day-to-day commissioning and provision of NHS services in Gloucestershire.

The report included updates on the Employer Recognition Scheme Silver Award, the South West Integrated Personalised Care Awards, a new dementia film series, and a new digital system for All Age Continuing Care (AACC). It also highlighted Infection Prevention and Control Week 2025 and a statement on tackling hate crimes.

The report also provided updates from Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (GHT) and Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust (GHC), including information on the temporary suspension of home births, resident doctors and BMA industrial action, supporting patients with This Is Me, a small fire at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital, a CQC inspection of maternity services, and the National Neonatal Audit Programme (NNAP).

Work Plan

The committee noted the dates of future meetings and suggested items to include on the committee work plan.