About us
The NHS Confederation is the membership body for the full range of organisations that commission and provide NHS services.
Who we are
We are the only body to bring together and speak on behalf of the whole of the NHS.
We have offices in England, Wales (the Welsh NHS Confederation) and Northern Ireland (Northern Ireland Confederation for Health and Social Care) and provide a subscription service for NHS organisations in Scotland.
Our starting point
We believe in a national health service that is available to all and is based on clinical need not an individual’s ability to pay. We also believe that the NHS can continually improve the care it delivers for patients and the public.
What we do
We help the NHS to guarantee high standards of care for patients and best value for taxpayers by representing our members and working closely together with our health and social care partners.
How we do it
We make sense of the whole health system, influence health policy and deliver industry-wide support functions for the NHS.
All of our work is underpinned by our core values:
- listening and responding to the needs of our members
- working in partnership to create dialogue and build consensus
- acting in the interests of patients and the public.
Who we represent
We represent all organisations that commission and provide NHS services.
Our members include acute trusts, ambulance trusts, community health service providers, foundation trusts, mental health providers, primary care trusts and clinical commissioning groups, and a growing number of independent and voluntary sector healthcare organisations that deliver services within the NHS.
We represent the NHS as a whole and also have a number of networks to support our members in areas of specific concern to their part of the healthcare system.
Find out about the benefits of becoming a member and how you can join.
Who we work with
We work in partnership with a wide range of organisations that represent health professionals, patients, their families and carers. We also work with NHS supply chain organisations, local government and partners from across the wider health and social care industry.
What we do
Influencing healthcare policy
We work with our members to influence key decisions and national policy development in the interests of the NHS, patients and the public.
We know that Government and national stakeholders value and listen to us because our views are informed by our members' expert knowledge of every part of the NHS.
Find out about our work with Government, parliament, stakeholders and the media.
Making sense of the whole health system
We help our members and partners to keep abreast of the complex policy agenda and make sense of an increasingly fluid and diverse healthcare system.
We bring together our members and partners from across health and social care to create dialogue, share learning, and build understanding and effective joint-working across all parts of the system.
Find out more about our publications and events and networking opportunities.
Delivering industry-wide support functions
We provide added value for our members and the wider healthcare system through the delivery of industry-wide support functions including:
Our work and key achievements in 2010/11
Click here to view a snapshot of some of the work that we have been undertaking on behalf of our members in 2011.