NHS England
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Revised vanguard support package published

The NHS Five Year Forward View partners have yesterday (10 December 2015) published an updated national support package for all 50 vanguards.

This follows an initial programme of support published in July 2015 for the first 29. Since then, a further 21 have been selected, eight urgent and emergency care (UEC) and thirteen acute care collaboration (ACC) vanguards.

The revised package has been updated to reflect the needs of the UEC and ACC vanguards and includes the learning to date from the first 29 vanguards. It is the result of extensive engagement with the vanguards including site visits, workshops and discussions.

Based on the feedback, the number of areas of support has been extended from eight to 10 and now includes ‘new operating models’ and ‘governance, accountability and provider regulation’.

‘New operating models’ has been added to support the ACC vanguards, who are linking hospitals together to improve their clinical and financial viability, develop the right operating model. It will also support the UEC vanguards to explore models to ensure they are working effectively as integrated communities.

‘Governance, accountability and provider regulation’ is designed to help the vanguards develop the right organisational form and governance model, as well as understand the impact on how they are regulated.

The national package has been developed to enable the vanguards to make the changes they want effectively and at pace. It aims to maximise the sharing of learning across the vanguards and spread good practice nationally across the wider NHS and care system.

Samantha Jones, Director of the New Care Models Programme, said: “I have been impressed by the consistent appetite for change across the vanguards but all 50 face real challenges to radically transform care for their populations. We have worked alongside the ACC and UEC vanguards to explore how we can support them to realise those ambitions and remove obstacles as well as spread their learning quickly and effectively.”

Alan Steward, Chief Operating Officer for Havering Clinical Commissioning Group and Vanguard Programme lead for Barking and Dagenham, Havering and Redbridge System Resilience Group said: “We have ambitious plans for the future of urgent and emergency care in our area. Being a vanguard means we can access a wide range of support and expertise from the national team and from other vanguards in the form of sharing best practice. This support package will provide us with the additional tools and expertise we will need to make sure our new model of care is successful.”

Susan Acott, Chief Executive of Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust and Vanguard Lead for Foundation Healthcare Group (Dartford and Gravesham)said: “We are involved in redesigning how the continuum of care works for patients from visiting their GP through to going to local hospital and specialist centres. It is exciting and ambitious but we need all the help we can get. The support package announced will provide expertise, resource and access to a host of tools to help us get the job done.”

Amanda Sullivan, Chief Officer for Mansfield and Ashfield, and Newark and Sherwood Clinical Commissioning Groups said: “The Mid Nottinghamshire Better Together vanguard has received valuable support from the national support package, assisting us in progressing our programme to integrate health care and social care, taking forward new ways of working and new models of care across our area.”

directory of the national support on offer for the vanguards and the wider NHS and social care has also been published yesterday to help them develop new partnerships with patients, the public and communities.

It outlines the services available from the seven NHS Five Year Forward View partners and some voluntary sector strategic partners. These organisations are part of the Health and Care Strategic Partner Programme which works in partnership with the Department of Health, NHS England and Public Health England.

The directory has been compiled with the Five Year Forward View People and Communities Board and is part of the national vanguard support package to help them empower patients and local communities.

This first directory entitled ‘A call to action for a directory of support’, developed with vanguards, will be followed by a comprehensive directory of national and local support in April 2016.

Samantha Jones, Director of the New Care Models Programme, said: “Changing the relationship we have with people is central to the Five Year Forward View and to the vision of the new care models. We want a new era where patients are partners in their health and care, and communities are active and involved in redesigning their services. This initial directory is the beginning. We’re looking for organisations to come forward to tell us how they can support the vanguards and innovation across the NHS and care services.”

Jeremy Taylor, Chair of the Five Year Forward View People and Communities Board, said: “Creating new partnerships between people and their professionals, and between communities and core services, will lie at the heart of sustainable care for the future. As this directory of support develops, we hope the vanguards will recognise the diversity of expertise and resources they can draw from the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector to redesign mainstream care.”

Andrew Bennett, Senior Responsible Officer for Better Care Together (Morecambe Bay Health Community) said: “To have all these resources available in one place will be of enormous benefit to all vanguards across the country. I am delighted to see so much expertise available, and I hope everyone will be able to make use of it.”

The People and Communities Board have set out six principles for the new care models to support the new relationship with local people and diverse communities:

  • Care and support is person centred: personalised, coordinated and empowering;
  • Services which are created in partnership with citizens and communities;
  • Focus is on equality and narrowing health inequalities;
  • Carers are identified, supported and involved;
  • Voluntary, community, social enterprise and housing sectors as key partners and enablers;
  • Volunteering and social action are recognised as key enablers.

This initial directory and the wider guide next year will signpost the support available for the vanguards and the wider NHS and care services to deliver the six principles.

 

Channel website: https://www.england.nhs.uk/

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NHS England

NHS rolls out discreet home-testing kits against cervical cancer for millions of women

25/08/2026 13:10:00

Nearly 4 million women will be offered HPV self-testing kits if they have not attended cervical screening appointments following invitations from the NHS in England.

The NHS is starting to roll out the new self-testing kits from today to encourage more women to complete their potentially lifesaving screening to detect human papillomavirus (HPV), which can increase the risk of cervical cancer.

England’s leading women’s health doctor described the move as a “gamechanger” given that around a third of those eligible aren’t up to date with their cervical screening, and this test provides a more “discreet and convenient option” for them.

The self-testing kit contains a swab, similar to a long cotton bud, which is used to collect a sample from the vagina. The sample is then posted back to the NHS for free, where it is checked for high-risk HPV.

If high-risk HPV is found, individuals will be invited to book a follow-up cervical screening appointment at their GP surgery or sexual health clinic, where a nurse or doctor will take a small sample from the cervix to check for cell changes.

Cervical screening helps prevent cervical cancer by checking for high-risk types of HPV. It is a common virus that can cause changes to cells in the cervix. These changes can usually be treated before cancer develops.

Women who are eligible will start receiving invitations today via the NHS App, text message, email or letter, and once invited they will be able to order a free kit through the NHS App or their NHS online account.

This is the next major step the NHS is taking in its pledge to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040, by making it as easy as possible for people to get the lifesaving HPV vaccination and increasing cervical screening attendance.

Dr Sue Mann, National Clinical Director for Women’s Health at NHS England, said: “Screening saves thousands of lives each year by preventing cancers and catching them earlier, but only around two-thirds of women are attending cervical screening appointments when invited by the NHS.

“Offering millions of women an alternative test they can do from the comfort of their own homes will be a gamechanger – making it easier than ever for them to get tested for HPV. 

“There are lots of reasons that may stop women from getting their cervical screening – embarrassment, lack of time, or worries about discomfort – and these kits provide a discreet and convenient option we hope will encourage more women to take up the life-saving test. 

“So, if you’re invited to take part, please order a test – it’s a simple swab you can do at home in minutes.”

Cervical screening appointments with a clinician remain the best way to help prevent cervical cancer, but HPV self-testing is being introduced by the NHS as an additional choice for people who have not taken up previous invitations.

HPV self-testing is an invitation-only offer and is being rolled out in phases across England as part of the NHS Cervical Screening Programme, starting with those aged between 30 and 65, who have not attended cervical screening following previous invitations.

The national rollout comes on the back of the YouScreen trial run by North London cancer alliances in collaboration with NHS England and King’s College London in 2021, which found offering self-testing kits to under-screened women at their GP practice or at home could boost the numbers screened in England by about 400,000 each year.

The UK National Screening Committee used evidence from this trial in its recommendation to roll this out wider.

The latest figures show that 68.8% of eligible women were up to date with their cervical screening – below the NHS England target of 80%. This means around 4 million women in England are not up to date with their routine check-up.

Women aged 24-64 are invited for cervical screening by the NHS every five years, or more frequently if HPV is detected.

Anyone who has been invited for cervical screening can still book an appointment at any time, even if the invitation was sent months or years ago.

It is still important to attend cervical screening appointments if you have been vaccinated against HPV as the vaccine does not provide protection from all types of HPV, so there is a still a small chance of getting cervical cancer.

People who routinely attend for a cervical screening test with a clinician at their GP practice or sexual health clinic should continue to book their appointments as normal.

Health and Social Care Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “Cervical cancer is preventable – but that’s why we want to make it as easy and convenient as possible for women to keep up with their screening.

“These free self-testing kits will be offered to four million women who are currently behind on their screening to make it easier for as many women as possible to keep themselves healthy and safe.

“This is the future NHS we are building – there for all of us when we need it, and acting as early as possible to stop preventable deaths.”

Cancer Research UK’s Chief Executive, Michelle Mitchell, said: “Cervical screening is a powerful tool that saves lives – it can prevent cervical cancer or spot it at an earlier stage when treatment is more likely to be successful. 

“While it’s best for cervical screening to be done by a nurse or doctor, there are barriers that make it challenging for some people to attend. At-home HPV self-testing kits will help more people take part in a way that works for them.

“If people receive their cervical screening or self-testing kit invitation, please consider taking up the offer and encourage loved ones to do the same. Beating cervical cancer means beating it for everyone, and this move brings us closer to that goal.”

Athena Lamnisos, Chief Executive Officer at The Eve Appeal, said: “There are many reasons why those eligible for cervical screening don’t attend.

“Challenges around the type of test it is, limited awareness around HPV and its role in cancer development, as well as practical barriers such as problems around booking and attending an appointment, stop many from going.

“Cervical screening is designed to prevent cervical cancer rather than respond to symptoms, attending a clinic requires people to actively prioritise an appointment among the many competing demands of everyday life.

“Self-testing which can be done at home will be a step-change for many. We have the incredible opportunity to see the back of cervical cancer. How brilliant would that be? But to achieve this, we need to support everyone eligible to attend screening.

“At Eve we welcome the rollout of this programme and its focus on the audiences who need it most in the first stage of the screening pathway. Looking to the future, we hope that self-testing will provide the under-screened and never screened with a new option to help address some of the key barriers. 

“This is not a replacement for clinician screening, and we will continue to work with and support those attending their traditional cervical screening, to help make their appointments more comfortable and accessible. 

“The NHS has set a 2040 target for eliminating cervical cancer. We hope that rolling out self-testing will help us reach it.”

Dawn Bryant, 62, from Hertfordshire, had cancerous cells found early thanks to NHS cervical screening and feels extremely lucky that it was detected and treated before the cancer progressed any further.

She says cervical screening may have saved her life and is encouraging other women who haven’t had theirs yet or have put it off, to book an appointment or do the at-home HPV test if invited.

“My nan died of cervical cancer when I was only 11 so I know how difficult it can be and how important cervical screening is.

“A screening test when I was 32 found I had severe high-grade cell changes, and after further testing I was told it was cancer. 

“I am so lucky it was found at an early stage and could be easily treated. I had some surgery to remove the cells, but I didn’t have to have chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or anything. It was a very scary time, but who knows what would have happened if I’d delayed having the test. 

“Since then, I have been regularly monitored, and had many tests and colposcopies, and although they can be a bit uncomfortable, I would not think twice about having them done again.

“I know lots of women who have put off having screening, and sadly, some who have been diagnosed with advanced cervical cancer after putting it off for years.

“It is so important women go for these check-ups or do the home-testing kit if invited. It doesn’t take very long and if you’re worried or have questions, the staff are excellent and will talk to you and help answer any fears you’ve got.”