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To: HA Chief Executives
PCT Chief Executives

Copy:
HA Directors of Public Health
HA Directors of Finance
Community Trust Chief Executives
Community Trust Directors of Nursing
PCT Lead Nurses
Heads of Nursing, Directorates of Health & Social Care

23 May 2002

Dear Chief Executive

COMMUNITY BUDGETS FUNDING 2002/2003 AND ONWARDS

1. I am writing on behalf of the Secretary of State to notify you of a recurrent addition to your Health Authority's 2002/2003 revenue resource limit (for the purpose of Section 97AA of the National Health Service Act 1977 (as amended)). This is shown at column B of Appendix A to this letter.

2. As a consequence of the above I am also writing on behalf of the Secretary of State to notify you of an addition to your Authority's financing requirement (cash limit) for 2002/2003. This allotment is made under Section 97 of the National Health Service Act 1977 as amended. This addition is shown at Column C of Appendix A.

3. The relevant reference number to be quoted on HA CIC tables H03 and H04 for both the Resource Limit Adjustment and Cash Limit Adjustment is given in column D of Appendix A.

4. The allocations are for 2002/2003 onwards. The total funding to your Health Authority is in columns B and C of Appendix A. Primary Care Organisations are asked to match this central funding with funding from their own allocations. Primary Care Organisation shares are set out in Appendix B.

Funding and purpose

5. Secretary of State announced £3m of new money on 1st November 2001 to provide community budgets for teams of community practitioners in all parts of the country. He encouraged Primary Care organisations to match this new investment from the centre with resources of their own so that each locality team would have a community budget worth at least £5,000 per year.

6. The community budgets are intended for PCTs (Primary Care Organisations) to provide modest sums for community based public health work which can be accessed directly by teams of frontline community practitioners* and health visitors. This is in keeping with the spirit of Shifting the Balance of Power and aimed specifically at Secretary of State's goal to tackle health priorities and inequalities. Examples could include hiring community venues, providing food for a cook and eat group, play materials for children, creches, health promotion materials.

7. Primary Care Organisations were required to set up budgets which could be accessed and managed directly by teams of community practitioners by 30th November 2001.

8. The central funding of £3 million is being made available to PCOs through Health Authorities during May 2002. Lead nurses in Primary Care Organisations need to engage front line community practitioners in agreeing how the budget is to be distributed in keeping with the principles of Shifting the Balance of Power.

9. The budgets are to be spent on community based public health activities being undertaken by community practitioners to tackle health inequalities and deliver national and local health improvement priorities. The money cannot be spent on staffing costs.

Propriety

10. As with all expenditure, trust chief executives must ensure that expenditure from these budgets complies with the trust's standing financial instructions and supporting procedures. Furthermore, they should ensure that internal propriety and probity controls for the procurement of goods and services are in place and understood. These arrangements should be user friendly, minimise bureaucracy and not hinder front line locality teams from using the community budgets to purchase what they need to a timetable that suits their needs.

Monitoring

11. There will be a sample survey of primary care during March 2003 to monitor how the money has been used and the impact on health inequalities and health improvement locally.

12. A copy of this letter is enclosed for Directors of Finance and Lead Nurses in Primary Care Organisations.

13. Please contact me at community_budget@doh.gsi.gov.uk (community_budget@doh.gsi.uk) if you require any further assistance in connection with this letter.

Yours sincerely

Monica Duncan
Nursing Officer

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copyright: © | published: July, 2002