Nearly nine in ten (87%) ICS leaders lack the budgets to meet their ambitions to provide more care closer to home, research has found.

The NHS Confederation survey showed nine in ten ICS leaders were committed to shifting more care out of hospitals but just over half (54%) had made progress towards this. 

Kathy McLean, chair of the NHS Confederation's ICS Network, said: ‘ICS leaders are very positive about the impact they are having and the many examples in the report show the progress that is being made. They are committed to delivering their four purposes including shifting care closer to home and reducing inequalities in health outcomes.'

McLean said a focus on NHS finances, however, risked ‘crowding out the longer-term transformation ICSs were established to deliver'.

Almost nine in ten ICS leaders (86%) said they were worried the financial position of their local authorities will affect the delivery of their ambitions.

In addition, only four in ten believed accountabilities were well defined between ICSs and NHS England.

The analysis followed our report showing local authorities were facing more calls for adult social care funding due to a drop in CHC funding and were also less able to focus on preventative care due to financial pressures.