Information regarding Multi Agency Working: FOI release

Information requested

1. Please advise in Scotland if multi agency working of this nature, i.e., Local Authority Council’s, NHS Scotland (and any other government agency) are a personal entity?

2. Is there a central complaints procedure for multi-agency working that allows for the ‘service user’ not to have to make individual complaints to each agency or authority?

Response

1. Please advise in Scotland if multi agency working of this nature, i.e. Local Authority Council’s, NHS Scotland (and any other government agency) are a personal entity?

The Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Act 2014 (the Act) required Local Authorities and NHS Boards to work together to form partnerships, known as Integration Authorities (IAs). There are 31 Integration Authorities in Scotland.

Integration Authorities can follow one of two models in the Act, these are:

• A ‘Lead Agency’, where one of the authorities (NHS or Local Authority) would be responsible for planning and delivering specified integrated health and social care functions (used only by Highland IA);
• A ‘Body Corporate’, whereby a new legal entity called an Integration Joint Board (IJB) is responsible for planning, commissioning and overseeing the delivery of the integrated health and social care functions that are delegated to it by the Local Authority and Health Board.

An IJB is the decision making and governance body for all health and social care functions, services and budgets that are delegated by the relevant Local Authority and Health Board. Whilst the IJB brings together Health Boards, Local Authorities and other partners, it is its own statutory body, constituting a separate legal entity to Local Authorities and Health Boards.

A Health and Social Care Partnership is the term used to describe the Local Authority and Health Board staff that deliver integrated health and social care services under the direction of the IJB.

2. Is there a central complaints procedure for multi-agency working that allows for the ‘service user’ not to have to make individual complaints to each agency or authority?

Individual IJBs have their own complaints procedures for complaints that relate to the integrated health and social care services that are delegated to the IJB.

Further information about individual IJBs, including contact details, can be found on the Health and Social Care Scotland website.

For health and social care services not delegated, complaints can be made through the organisation responsible (Health Board or Local Authority).

For a national or pan-Scotland complaint, for example regarding the principle of this multi-agency working, it may be more appropriate for a single complaint to be made directly to the Scottish Government. However, this would depend on the specifics of the complaint.

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