Boards face significant challenges, auditor says

Despite 2018/19 gains at NHS Tayside, when it achieved its financial plan and exceeded targeted efficiencies, challenges remained. The auditor said the board had received brokerage of £17.6m to achieve its 2018/19 financial targets, but it was £4.7m less than planned. Outstanding brokerage was £63.5m at 31 March 2019, though all territorial boards’ outstanding brokerage at 31 March 2019 is due to be written off.

Auditor general Caroline Gardner (pictured) said: ‘It’s a positive step that NHS Tayside has a transformation plan, but moving away from the current ways of working will be difficult without well-developed and detailed implementation plans. So far there is little evidence of the sustainable service redesign and transformation that is critical to reducing costs while maintaining or improving services.’

In its report on NHS Highland, Audit Scotland said the board had identified savings of £50.5m in 2018/19 but achieved planned savings of £26.6m, with other savings and benefits of £5.9m. The board needed government loans of £18m to meet financial targets.

Ms Gardner said: ‘NHS Highland urgently needs a clear and achievable plan to redesign services. This must go beyond the series of short-term fixes we have seen in the past. The scale of changes needed are such that the board is unlikely to become financially stable in the next two years.’