News

NHS England publishes Business Plan 2016/17

Today (31 March) we published our Business Plan for 2016/17 which builds on three guiding principles which will shape our work in the year ahead:

  1. Constancy of purpose and priorities
  2. Coherent national support for locally led improvement
  3. Solve today’s issues by accelerating tomorrow’s solutions

There is strong continuity in our 10 business plan priorities for the year ahead. These reflect the main themes of the government’s mandate and embody the agenda of the Five Year Forward View. These are organised under the following themes:

  • Improving health – closing the health and wellbeing gap
  • Transforming care – closing the care and quality gap
  • Controlling costs and enabling change – closing the finance and efficiency gap.

Simon Stevens, Chief Executive of NHS England, said: “The challenge for the National Health Service in the coming year is to raise performance in those areas most visibly under pressure – including A&E, waits for operations, and management of hospital finances. But at the same time we need real progress on critical but long neglected services, including strengthening GP care, mental health, and prevention.”

Underpinning all of our priorities are patients. To achieve what is an ambitious and challenging plan, it’s vitally important that patients remain at the centre of what we do. Our core objective remains the same – to ensure all voices are heard, especially those who have found it harder to make their opinions felt by engaging communities and patients in new ways.

Read the Business Plan for 2016/17.