
Exploring Mental Health Inpatient Capacity
This report explores the pressures on inpatient mental health services across Sustainability and Transformation Partnerships in England, drawing on a wide range of datasets, published research and interviews with staff working on mental health services. The report was commissioned by and includes a response from the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
Learning and Development of Problem Solving Techniques
What is innovation?

Clinical Workforce Scenarios for the Black Country
The future is highly uncertain.

Waiting Times and Attendance Durations at English A&E Departments
In March 2019, NHS England is expected to report the outcome of its review of constitutional waiting times targets. This report reviews the factors that have led to the decline in performance against one of these targets - the 4-hour target for Accident and Emergency Departments. The analysis uncovers new insights and has the potential to reshape received wisdom about the performance of A&E departments, carrying important implications for healthcare policy and system leadership.

New care models - what's the evidence
High level findings from a series of evidence reviews on new care models.

Tools & templates: Problem structuring
Problem trees and driver diagrams can help you to understand the causes and effects of your problem.
Knowledge sharing
Knowledge sharing is vital for sharing good practice, enabling adoption and spread of innovations, and preventing people from making the same mista
The Potential Economic Impact of Virtual Outpatient Appointments in the West Midlands: A scoping study
The Strategy Unit was recently approached to examine the case for a shift from traditional outpatient services to the use of virtual a
Pre-mortem
The pre-mortem technique was developed by Klein (2007) using ‘prospective hindsight’ to identify risks at the outset of a project.

Evaluation of an Integrated Mental Health Liaison Service (Rapid Assessment Interface and Discharge Service) in Northern Ireland
A high proportion of patients treated for physical health conditions also have co-morbid mental health problems; and there is growing acceptance of

The Status of Electronic Palliative Care Coordination Systems in the West Midlands
Commissioned by NHS England, this report describes the state of electronic palliative care coordination systems in the West Midlands.
Making a priority of mental health and wellbeing in Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire has been an early mover in the transition from Sustainability and Transformation Partnerships (STP) to Integrated Care Systems (ICS

Tools & templates: Other points of view
Use Edward deBono’s ‘Six Thinking Hats’ or consider a wider point of view, to approach a problem or potential solution from different perspectives.
Evaluation of the Dudley New Care Models Programme
This is the final system-wide report from the evaluation.

Tools & templates: Breaking the rules
Generate new ideas to solve a problem – by identifying the underlying assumptions, unwritten rules and thinking that maintain the status quo.

Making the case for integrating physical and mental health services in England - National overview
This is a national overview report of our Making the case for integrating physical and mental health services reporting which took place in July 20

Tools & Templates: Five Whys
Keep asking ‘why’ to peel back the layers of your problem, until you identify a potential root cause.
Risk and Reward Sharing for NHS Integrated Care Systems
Risk and reward sharing is a simple and attractive concept, offering a commissioner the opportunity to co-opt and incentivise a provid
Horizontal or Vertical: Which way to integrate?
In 2011, Primary Care Trusts faced a difficult choice. The Transforming Community Services policy required a complete break of commissioner and provider functions. But what should PCTs do with the community health services they delivered; vertically integrate with an acute trust, horizontally integrate with a mental health trust, or set up a stand-alone community trust or Community Interest Company? Seven years on, this report explores the impact this choice had on the level and growth in emergency hospital use in older people and considers the wider implications for the NHS as it develops new models of care and integrated care systems

Palliative and End of Life Care Report for Children and Young People
Commissioned by NHS England, this report describes the the characteristics and levels of resource required by children and young people (CYP) (0-25