Barking and Dagenham Council and the North East London Integrated Care Board (NEL ICB) are set to pool health and social care funds under a new Section 75 agreement, a legal framework designed to facilitate the pooling of budgets for integrated health and social care services.
The agreement, which will cover the period from April 2026 to March 2027, aims to enhance collaboration between health and social care services, improve resident outcomes, and ensure efficient service delivery. This new agreement supersedes a previous tri-borough arrangement and establishes a Barking and Dagenham-specific partnership, moving towards a more local place based
approach.
The Better Care Fund (BCF) for Barking and Dagenham has a total allocation of £37,971,555 for 2026/27. This funding comprises contributions from the NHS ICB, the Disabled Facilities Grant, and the Local Authority Better Care Grant. Specifically, the NHS ICB's minimum contribution is £22,375,886, the Disabled Facilities Grant amounts to £2,386,824, and the Local Authority Better Care Grant is £13,208,845.
The partnership is intended to support integrated and preventative care, improve outcomes for residents, and enhance local economic resilience. To achieve this, the agreement aims to engage the community, voluntary, and faith sectors. These sectors will play a role in delivering services, with an emphasis on working closely with the local community and voluntary sector and faith sector to deliver some of these services, and also employing up-skilled residents locally.
Furthermore, the agreement provides an opportunity for the local community to collaborate with the council and ICB to provide responsive services based on their needs and also their preferences.
The Health and Wellbeing Board has recommended agreeing to the Section 75 agreement and has delegated authority to the Strategic Director of People to agree any extensions or variations, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing, Adult Social Care & Health. This move signifies a commitment to a more localised and responsive approach to integrated health and social care delivery within Barking and Dagenham.
Public reports pack Tuesday 29-Sep-2026 17.00 Health Wellbeing Board.pdf