Lancashire County Council will announce its full support of the landmark partnership that has seen local authorities and the NHS come together later this week.

A new system of health and care delivery across Lancashire and South Cumbria was launched last week.

It saw the eight NHS clinical commissioning groups that were responsible for overseeing local NHS services for over a decade replaced by NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care board.

The organisation have formed together formally as part of Lancashire and South Cumbria Health and Care Partnership with a key goal to improve the health of the community so that people live healthier and longer, relieving pressure on the NHS.

Lancashire County Council’s cabinet is set to formally agree its full support for the partnership with all the other local authorities in Lancashire and South Cumbria on Thursday July, 7 where they will confirm the councillor who will chair the new committee.

Commenting on Lancashire and South Cumbria Health and Care Partnership, Kevin Lavery, chief executive of NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board, said: “There is an overwhelming sense of opportunity across all of the partners in Lancashire and South Cumbria to work together to improve the health and wellbeing of our local people – and there’s a collective ambition to grasp it.

“I have an incredible sense of positivity about the future and greater integration of health and care.”

The partnership will have huge input from the voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCFSE) Sector, which is important in keeping people active and well in the community.

It aims to deliver better joined up services, tackle health inequalities, ensure services are not duplicated by different organisations and deliver better health outcomes.

County Councillor Michael Green, cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said: “The creation of the Lancashire and South Cumbria Health and Care Partnership represents a massive sea change in the way local authorities and the NHS work to promote and maintain good health in the community.

“Having the local authorities leading the partnership gives us a vital opportunity to look at and improve the services we provide including housing, leisure services, education, economic development, public health and adult and children’s social care, to ensure they are fully integrated with NHS services.

“It will help us make a huge difference to people’s lives and ensure we provide better support for the people in our communities who need it most.

"Where people cannot be kept well, the NHS will be there, as always, but more can be done by treatment in the community in intermediate care to keep people away from the need for acute hospital care as much as possible."