A £30 MILLION fund is set to “transform” the way patients in Bolton are treated – helping people stay in their own homes rather than go to hospital.

Council and NHS bosses hope pooling cash in the joint Better Care Fund will help keep patients independent while improving service efficiency.

But Cllr Linda Thomas, deputy leader of Bolton Council, said while it was “undoubtedly the right thing for patients” she was disappointed the Government had not provided any set-up costs.

Bolton NHS Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) is contributing around 87 per cent of the total fund - £26.4 million – while the council will bring the remaining cash to the pot.

It is hoped pooling resources will save health and social care services nearly £3 million in the next financial year by reducing care home admissions, delayed care transfers and hospital stays.

Cllr Thomas, who is chairman of the council’s health and wellbeing board, said: “We recognise that pooling budgets and integrating services is the way forward for patients.

“However, we would have liked the Government to give us some additional resources to set everything up – instead we had to use existing NHS money. This is not new funding.

“We recognise and praise staff for the work they have done in getting us to where we are. Everyone has risen to the challenge.”

From April 1, nearly £5 million will be spent on Integrated Neighbourhood Teams made up of staff including social workers, physiotherapists, GPs, nurses and occupational therapists.

Patients who have multiple long-term conditions or are at a high risk of hospital admission will be allocated a single key worker from this team.

Instead of having multiple appointments with different specialists, they will have a single phone number they can call at any time and a care plan spanning their social, physical and mental health.

Patients will also benefit from a rapid response service, running between 9am and 10pm, seven days a week to provide at-home assessments within two hours to judge the care they need.

A further £14 million of funding will be put into intermediate care, £4 million will fund independent living, £718,000 to provide breaks for carers and £3 million to protect social care services.

Su Long, chief officer of NHS Bolton Clinical Commissioning Group, said: “The CCG is looking forward to working with our partners to deliver the Better Care Fund.

“This aims to support more Bolton people to remain independent in their own homes, therefore preventing unnecessary hospital admissions.”