March 23rd 2026
The government’s Neighbourhood Health Framework sets out a new direction for delivering care closer to home, with services organised around local neighbourhoods. In our latest Ctrl+Care podcast, Katie Thorn and Michelle Corrigan explored what the framework means for adult social care, and where digital care fits.
Social care recognised as a core partner
A clear positive from the framework is how strongly social care is referenced. As Katie Thorn explains, “what is really promising is that social care is explicitly mentioned multiple times through it.”
She adds that social care is “really throughout referenced as a core partner,” alongside the NHS and local authorities. The framework makes clear that neighbourhood health “won’t be deliverable without the NHS, local authorities and other partners working together.”
This reinforces the role of social care in prevention, community-based support, and reducing hospital and care home admissions. However, the podcast also reflects on the risk of social care being framed too narrowly.
As Katie points out, while reducing pressure on hospitals is a priority, “we also know that not everything about social care is about bed blocking and hospital discharge.” Social care’s contribution is broader, including supporting independence, quality of life, and long-term wellbeing.
Care homes and community support in focus
Care homes receive particular attention in the framework. Katie highlights “a record eight mentions for care homes,” with residents identified as a high-priority cohort alongside people with frailty, those who are housebound, and people approaching end of life.
The framework links this to reducing avoidable admissions and improving coordinated care. At the same time, it emphasises strengthening community-based support to help people remain in their own homes where possible.
Home care is not always explicitly named, but as Michelle Corrigan reflects, there are “quite a lot of references to community services, people who are housebound, people who receive care at home.” In practice, this points to a more joined-up approach across home care, community health, and wider neighbourhood services.
There are also gaps. Learning disability is only briefly mentioned as a future priority. Given the scale of support for working-age adults, this is likely to be an area for further development.
Digital as a critical enabler
Digital is described in the framework as critical to delivering neighbourhood health, and this was a strong theme in the podcast discussion.
Katie Thorn explains:
“we know that if we’re going to have actual integration in neighbourhoods, if we’re actually going to be making sure care is closer to home, tech is going to have to be a core part of that.”
She highlights how digital can support access and coordination:
“really thinking about having tech to improve access to care, both phone, online, and then freeing up space for in person where that’s required… improving coordination between services. Single patient record I’m sure will be a big part of that.”
The framework also points to the potential for digital to reduce duplication and support prevention. However, Katie adds an important caveat:
“that’s great if it is around efficiencies and not around actually increasing workload burden on staff because they can move faster.”
Both Katie and Michelle emphasise that digital should be seen as an enabler, embedded into everyday practice rather than treated as a standalone function.
What this means for providers
A key theme from the podcast is that the impact of the framework will depend on how it is delivered locally.
As Michelle Corrigan explains:
“a lot of this is going to really depend on the individual neighbourhoods coming up with their own specific plans… this is a national framework but each neighbourhood… is going to have their own approach.”
She encourages providers to take an active role:
“for any care providers who are listening… look at who your neighbourhood health teams are… make sure you’re involved in the conversation.”
Importantly, she also highlights that this is not starting from scratch:
“none of this is a clean slate… these are all existing systems… the relationships between systems and services already are operational.”
This means neighbourhood health will build on existing partnerships, which may already be working well in some areas.
As Michelle concludes, “each individual neighbourhood is going to look very different,” reflecting local needs, relationships, and priorities.
For social care providers, the opportunity is clear. Engage early, shape local plans, and ensure that digital tools support joined-up, person-centred care in practice.
Access the Neighbourhood Health Framework
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