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The government's 10-year plan for health and care

Three future shifts

Our health and care system is in crisis and at risk of becoming financially and operationally unsustainable. The King’s Fund supports the need for transformational shifts in how health and care services are planned, delivered and accessed.

The government has a mission to improve health, and as part of that is working to produce a 10 Year Health Plan for health in order to reform the health system, structured around three shifts: from a service treating sickness to one focused on preventing illness occurring in the first place; from delivering care in hospitals to delivering care closer to home, in communities and in primary care; and digital transformation of service delivery.

Here we explore how to make those shifts happen.

Implementing the 10 Year Health Plan

The case for reform and approach to it

The Darzi review showed that services are stretched to breaking point and that incremental improvement will not do. Radical change is needed.

From hospital to community services

The biggest improvements to health and care will come from prioritising services outside of hospital. That means greater investment in the primary and community services that support people before they end up needing hospital treatment.

  • What should national policy-makers do to make care closer to home a reality?

    As part of its 10 Year Health Plan, the government plans to shift care from hospital to community and integrate neighbourhood health services. This long read examines the policy levers a...

  • General election priorities: improving access to out-of-hospital care

    Improving access to out-of-hospital care

    This briefing focuses on how to improve access to out-of-hospital care, including GPs, social care, community services and community mental health services.

  • Group of clinicians sat in an office having a meeting and smiling

    Integrated care summit 2025

    Join our flagship event on integrated care — connect with 100+ health leaders to explore prevention, digital transformation, workforce solutions, and closer-to-home care.

From treating sickness to preventing it

We are facing a public health emergency and we cannot treat our way out of it. If we want to reduce demand, improve health outcomes, and create a sustainable future for the NHS, we need a system-wide shift to prevention. But how do you lead that shift when budgets are tight, demand is rising, and the system itself isn’t wired for prevention?

  • Tackling health inequalities: seven priorities for the NHS

    Drawing on The King’s Fund’s five-year programme of work on health inequalities, this long read outlines what we think the anticipated 10-year health plan should focus on to help the NHS...

  • Image of a father playing football with three young children

    Time for bold action – making the shift to prevention

    Join leaders from across the health and care sector and beyond at our in-person event, where we’ll explore the bold, system-wide action needed to shift the focus from treating illness to...

  • What are health inequalities?

    This explainer provides an overview of how health inequalities are experienced in England’s population.

  • Ten actions the government can take to improve children’s health

    Children in the UK experience some of the worst health outcomes in Europe. What steps should the government take to address this?

From analogue to digital

The shift from analogue to digital needs not just better technology and data infrastructure but also evidence on how workforce, service users, suppliers and regulators affect successful implementation.

  • Lost in the system: the need for better admin

    2 out of 3 people say they've had a problem with NHS admin in the past year. We explore the impact these experiences is having on public perceptions of the NHS and what could be done to ...

  • What could the shift from hospital to community mean for research and innovation in the NHS?

    When it comes to research and innovation, the NHS has much to be proud of. But what would it look like to be world-leading in driving R&I across community settings, asks Anna Charles.

  • Adapt to thrive in digital health and care – community of interest

    Explore how to adapt and thrive in the developing digital health and care system by joining our new community of interest, with an online platform and monthly online sessions.

In-person event

Making the 10 Year Health Plan a reality

Join us at our event in September to explore the choices and actions needed to transform the health service.

Book now

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