Lessons from history for the NHS 10 year plan

Since 2000 the NHS in England has seen at least six major national plans, accompanied by at least ten reorganisations at various levels. From Tony Blair’s NHS Plan to the recent Five Year Forward View, they all aimed to create tangible, widespread changes in the health service that would give patients and taxpayers a fundamentally better deal.

Now the NHS is once more being asked to draw up a master plan for its future – one which will last for ten years, and will be backed by £20bn a year in extra funding on top of the largest budget of any public service. Simon Stevens and Matt Hancock have one important advantage over their predecessors: the ability to learn from the past about what works and what does not.

The Nuffield Trust has been researching key questions that should inform the new plan. What factors always seem to be forgotten, and tend to trip up even the best thought out visions for the future? What is the track record of lining up staff and money to support changes, and how could this be better? How do you choose priorities that can actually happen?

Our evening event will bring together prominent speakers who helped create the plans of the past with those who watched and sometimes criticised from the outside. We will hold an honest and frank debate to identify the triumphs and disasters of the past, why they happened, and what needs to be done to take on board the lessons of the past and avoid making the same mistakes again.

We hope you will join us for a lively discussion and drinks reception at the IfG on 16th October 2018 from 5.45-8pm.