Improving the Health and Wellbeing - Commissioning guide for CCGs

This practical guide is designed to support Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs), with Local Authorities and Learning Disability Partnership Boards, to commission health services in ways that achieve better health outcomes for people with learning disabilities in a challenging financial climate. Whilst Local Authorities will lead commissioning for a considerable proportion of services, CCGs must take responsibility from PCTs for leading the commissioning of specialist and general health services for people with learning disabilities.

The guidance has had significant input from a number of organisations and groups including the Strategic Health Authority Learning Disability Leads group, the Professional Senate, the Faculty of Psychiatry of Intellectual Disability of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, the Valuing People Now Health Steering Group, the RCGP Intellectual Disability Professional Network and many others. It was created in collaboration with the three Pathfinder CCGs working with the Improving Health and Lives Learning Disability Public Health Observatory. We acknowledge and are grateful for input from the Joint Commissioning Panel for Mental Health, which brings together the Royal Colleges of GPs, Nursing and Psychiatrists, the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, third sector partners, patients and carers.