NHS merger and job losses planned amid 50% cut

Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire & West Berkshire Integrated Care Board (BOB ICB) could merge with East Berkshire under major reforms

An NHS commissioning body has said it is looking to merge with another area as it manages a major reduction in funding.

A representative from the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire & West Berkshire Integrated Care Board (BOB ICB) has said there are plans to combine with East Berkshire to create a new organisation.

The new structure could be in place as soon as next April and would result in job losses.

The plans have emerged after the government told integrated care boards across the country to reduce their running costs by 50%.

The BOB ICB was formed in July 2022, replacing three clinical commissioning groups in the area.

The organisation decides how to spend the NHS budget in the area it covers.

The planned restructure would see a new body formed to include East Berkshire, which is currently covered by the Frimley Integrated Care Board.

Dan Leveson from BOB ICB outlined the plans at a health scrutiny committee in Oxfordshire.

'Difficult for us'

He said: "In the South East we have currently six integrated care boards.

"You can imagine with a reduction of 50%, we're not going to have six in the future.

"None of this is confirmed and this is a fairly rapidly moving picture.

"The BOB ICB will combine with East Berkshire to create a new integrated care board, this is the proposal that's in at the moment.

"We're merging and creating a new organisation and reducing our costs across that organisation, so there is going to be a restructure there is going to be a new operating model and there is going to be competitive processes for jobs."

He said that the 50% reduction is on top of a 30% cut that the care board had implemented in the last year - and said it would mean job losses.

"We are going to lose people and that is going to be difficult for us," he added.

Any new structure would be have to be agreed by the Health Secretary.

The Department of Health and Social Care has been approached for a comment.