THE merging of health and social care services in Wigan is on course to reach a landmark date next year, council bosses will be told.

From April 2019 the borough will have a joint commissioning committee (JCC), integrating both health and local authority leadership.

It will oversee a pooled budget of funds from the council and Wigan’s clinical commissioning group (CCG).

Bosses say the closer working relationship will eradicate duplication in the respective systems, creating more cost effective and improved services.

A report tabled for a meeting of the council’s cabinet next week says work is ongoing to create a "lawful agreement" – referred to as a section 75 agreement – so the CCG and council can merge the parts of their budgets relating to health and social care.

“Initial analysis has suggested a pooled budget of approximately £350m,” the report reads.

A consultation on the arrangement, made available both to the public and ‘key stakeholders’ such as health organisations, attracted ‘positive’ feedback with respondents ‘supportive of the closer working of the CCG and council’, the report states.

Cabinet members will be provided with an update next week before a final report on the progress made in the forming of the JCC will be tabled for their meeting in February.

Final sign-off is expected to be provided by both the town hall and the CCG around that time ahead of the new board being in place in time for April.

A "shadow" JCC has been operating to help officers ‘oversee and design’ how the committee will work once it is formalised, the report adds.

The new working arrangement will see the council chief executive and chief officer of the CCG working closely together – both roles were held this year by Donna Hall.

The retirement of the council’s top officer in February will therefore see two new individuals in the roles, working alongside the political leadership of the council on the JCC.

Dr Tim Dalton, chairman of the CCG, speaking earlier this week in relation to Ms Hall’s retirement, said: “We need to make sure that patients get the great services they expect from the local NHS.

“Working more closely with the council to integrate health and social care is absolutely the best way to deliver this.

“We look forward to continuing that work through a new CCG Accountable Officer working in partnership with the new chief executive in the council.”

Wigan council’s cabinet will meet on Thursday, December 13.