ALLIANCE warns key gaps risk undermining NHS Delivery Plans
- Area of Work: Policy and Research
- Type: News Item
- Published: 28th November 2025
The ALLIANCE urges stronger social care integration, a clearer prevention focus and digital inclusion at the heart of NHS Delivery proposals
The Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland has submitted its response to the Scottish Government’s consultation on “NHS Delivery – a new national delivery organisation”.
The consultation was seeking views on plans to merge NHS Education for Scotland (NES) and NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) into one body – currently coined ‘NHS Delivery’. It is envisioned that this new organisation will be the sole national leader for innovation and digital transformation across health and social care.
The response, shaped by engagement with third sector organisation, those with lived experience and wider partners, welcomes the ambition and intention behind merging NES and NSS. The ALLIANCE believes a single national body could improve efficiency, data use, digital infrastructure and workforce planning – if designed well.
However, the ALLIANCE highlights several concerns in the proposals. Members outlined how the proposals are overly NHS-focused and gives too little consideration to social care, urging that social care be treated as an equal partner with clear routes for involvement. The ALLIANCE also warns that the draft plans do not yet show how the new body will support prevention, uphold human rights, reduce inequalities or involve people with lived experience and the third sector – all key principles of current health and social care reform strategies.
To strengthen the proposals, the ALLIANCE calls for:
- Digital inclusion to be a core priority
- A human rights based approach embedded throughout
- Deeper integration of the third sector and lived experience to avoid top-down decision making
These steps are essential if NHS Delivery is to truly support Scotland’s long-term health and social care transformation.
You can read the full response in the attached resources below.
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