Final ICS confirms chief executive

Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and West Berkshire ICS — the last ICS to make an announcement — has named James Kent as chief executive designate of its integrated care board. Dr Kent is currently the ICS’s executive lead and accountable officer for the three clinical commissioning groups. 

Dr Kent said: “I’m proud to be able to continue the journey I began when appointed to lead the ICS last May. Over the last 18 months, I have seen the depth of talent that exists within all system partner organisations and our wider stakeholders and what we can achieve when we work together.  I am ever more convinced of the potential of this system to improve health and health outcomes for the population we serve.”

Other appointments in recent days include Humber, Coast and Vale Health and Care Partnership, which has appointed current system leader Stephen Eames as CEO designate, while South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw has appointed chief executive of University Hospitals Derby and Burton Gavin Boyle to the role.

Mr Eames said: “I am extremely honoured to be appointed as ICS chief executive for Humber, Coast and Vale to help to lead our integrated care system into this new era.

“I look forward to building on the work of the partnership over the last five years to help build an even stronger partnership that will deliver better health and care for the future.”

Meanwhile, lead officer to Hertfordshire and West Essex ICS Jane Halpin has been appointed as the system’s CEO designate.

It was announced on Tuesday that Fiona Edwards has been given the role at Frimley ICS. Until last year, she was the chief executive of Surrey and Borders Partnership Foundation Trust. She is currently executive lead of Frimley Health ICS and accountable officer of the corresponding clinical commissioning group.

Frimley Health was, last month, the only system rated level 1 under NHSE’s system oversight framework, meaning it is ”consistently high performing”.

Six ICSs have confirmed they have failed to appoint a chief executive, including five in the Midlands — Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, Black Country and West Birmingham, Coventry and Warwickshire, Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, and Birmingham and Solihull.

Black Country ICB chair designate Jonathan Fellows said: “Over the next few months we expect to restart the recruitment process to ultimately find someone who can work with system partners to create a fully mature, thriving ICB with a strong place-based approach to delivery and transformation. In the meantime we are working on interim arrangements to ensure strong leadership over this transitional period.” 

In Birmingham and Solihull ICS David Melbourne, who has been leading the ICS’s development, will be designate interim chief executive of the ICB. Karen Helliwell will remain as interim accountable officer of the CCG.

The Shropshire ICS said the “recruitment process to identify a permanent chief executive will restart imminently”. It said the incumbent, Mark Brandreth, had “decided not to pursue this opportunity” but that he would remain in the interim.

Greater Manchester is the sixth system that failed to recruit. It is one of the largest ICSs and has been regarded by some as a leader in integration and system working, having been made a “devolved” NHS region five years ago, and becoming one of the first ICSs. Its interim lead, Sarah Price, will continue as interim chief officer until another attempt in the new year. 

The systems will carry out the next round of recruitment over the next couple of months. 

The new CEOs are “chief executive designates” for the NHS Integrated Care Body for their ICS, and will be confirmed in this role if the Health and Care Bill is passed by Parliament, as expected, early next year. Under the bill, ICBs will from April be the part of ICSs’ structure which will make most executive decisions and will control NHS resources, including taking on the functions of CCGs.

Recruitment for the 42 ICS CEO roles started in the autumn, run by NHS England.

This story is being updated as ICSs confirm news about their ICB CEOs. 

Update: An earlier version of this story stated Lincolnshire ICS had not appointed a chief executive, despite the map showing John Turner had been named designated chief. This has now been corrected. 

Map key

Red: Neither chair nor chief executive confirmed; Yellow: Either chair or chief executive confirmed; Green: Both chair and chief executive confirmed