PCN DES requirements merged under new contract

The previous eight PCN service specifications will be rolled into one according to the new contract documents, published today (28 March).

NHS England said the move would support PCNs to ‘improve outcomes by simplifying the service requirements’.

The DES service specifications now detail that a PCN must deliver four key functions and confirms their role as ‘part of’ an integrated neighbourhood team (INT):

• Co-ordinate, organise and deploy shared resources to support and improve resilience and care delivery at both PCN and practice level.
• Collaborate with non-GP providers to provide better joined up care, as part of an INT.
• Improve health outcomes for its patients through effective population health management and reducing health inequalities.
• Target resource and efforts in the most effective way to meet patient need, which includes delivering proactive care.

The enhanced access requirement remains separate and the contract includes expected changes first detailed in a letter from NHS England’s primary care national director, Dr Amanda Doyle, earlier this year.

These included changes to the additional roles reimbursement scheme (ARRS), such as adding enhanced nurses to the scheme and removing the cap on other roles and rolling the clinical director (CD) and leadership and management funding into core PCN funding.

Three investment and impact fund (IIF) indicators will also be reallocated to the capacity and access payments (CAP).  

The documents also confirmed that funding for 2024/25 would be £2.916 per patient with £2.218 multiplied by PCN registered list size as of January 2024, and £0.698 multiplied by adjusted population.

This includes both core PCN funding, clinical director payment and PCN leadership and management payment. Enhanced access payments will be £7.674 multiplied by the PCN’s adjusted population. 

If a practice wishes to sign up to, or opt out of, the DES, it must inform its commissioner by 30 April 2024.

Last month NHS England revealed that the mechanism to redistribute unclaimed ARRS funding would be removed under the 2024/25 contract. Three IIF targets were also scrapped, with the funding being moved to capacity and access payments instead.