The Cabinet Member Signing meeting was scheduled to discuss the extension of a Section 75 Partnership Agreement with the NHS. This agreement facilitates joint commissioning and pooled budgets for various adult and children's services.

Section 75 Partnership Agreement

The meeting was scheduled to consider the extension of a Section 75 Partnership Agreement between Haringey Council and NHS NCL ICB. This agreement, first established in 2017, is a contractual mechanism used by local authorities and the NHS to implement joint commissioning models. The report pack indicated that the current agreement was due to expire at the end of February 2026, and a new agreement was needed to cover the full financial year 2025/26 and make provision for 2026/27.

The report pack outlined that the Section 75 agreement enables:

• Lead commissioning for specified care groups.
• Pooled budgets for specified care groups.

Initially focused on adult services, the agreement was extended in 2018 to include children's services. The report pack stated that the partnership aims to deliver integrated, flexible commissioning across care groups with a focus on outcomes, a coordinated preventative approach, and driving up the quality of community health services. It also highlighted improved inter-agency working and streamlined decision-making.

The recommendation scheduled for discussion was to approve the extension of the Section 75 partnership arrangement to cover March 2025/26 and the financial year 2026/27. It was also recommended to delegate the negotiation and finalisation of the agreement's terms to the Corporate Director of Adults, Housing and Health, in consultation with the Corporate Director of Finance and Resources.

Alternative options considered included exiting the arrangement, which was dismissed due to the dismantling of a framework that supports good working relationships with the NHS and could lead to duplication of efforts and resources. The option to do nothing was not viable as the current agreement was set to expire. The recommended option of renewing the legal framework was favoured for reducing duplication in contract management, monitoring, and reporting, and for promoting collaboration focused on whole-system services and long-term planning.

The report pack noted that having a Section 75 in place is a requirement for receiving the Better Care Funding. It also mentioned that local NHS Trusts providing services through the agreement include Whittington Health NHS Trust and North London NHS Foundation Trust. The report pack also indicated that the agreement supports the outcomes and objectives of the Haringey Partnership and aligns with priorities in the Council's Corporate Delivery Plan 2024-2026, particularly concerning children and young people's outcomes such as a best start in life and happy childhoods, and adult, health, and welfare outcomes like a healthy and active population and residents connected with the right support at the right time.

The report pack also included comments from statutory officers. The Chief Finance Officer noted that the combined contributions for the agreement total £95.157m, with funding for 2025/26 and 2026/27 provided by ICB contributions and the Council's Adults Social Care, Public Health, and Children's Social Care and Education budgets. The Director of Legal and Governance confirmed there were no legal reasons preventing the Cabinet Member from approving the recommendations. The report pack also addressed the Public Sector Equality Duty under the Equality Act (2010), stating that the services within the partnership agreement are universal and targeted services designed to meet the needs of vulnerable residents, and are expected to have a positive impact in relation to the duty.