Stephanie Townley
Stephanie is an experienced senior member of the IPE team at Addleshaws. She specialises in complex public private procurements, advising both the public and private sector, in relation to health care, social housing, street lighting, schools and outsourcing. Recently she has acted on a range of matters relating to operational PFI projects including a number of variations, disputes and associated settlement agreements.
Stephanie has advised on a wide range of projects with a variety of structures from joint ventures, LLPs and LEPs to PFIs and straight outsourcing arrangements advising clients in respect of the initial tender process including procurement issues through to reaching financial close and further in respect of operational matters post-close.
Practice Area
Panel
- Contributing Author
Qualified Year
- 2003
Education
- University of Newcastle Upon Tyne - Law (2:1)
- LPC from The College of Law, York
- Law LLB
3 Contributions by Stephanie Townley
PRACTICE NOTES
Care Act 2014 Part 1: Local authority adult social care duties, commissioning, market shaping, assessment and funding (England)
Interpreting the social care framework in Part 1
This Practice Note explains the framework governing local authority responsibilities for arranging and funding social care in England as established by the Care Act 2014 (CA 2014). It addresses the overarching duties that significantly shape local authorities’ wider obligations regarding the commissioning of health and social care services.
CA 2014, Pt 1 delineates the scheme of local authority duties for the organisation and financing of social care. It sets out a series of general duties that materially influence local authorities’ broader obligations concerning the commissioning of health and social care provision. Those overarching duties markedly affect authorities’ overall obligations for commissioning health and social care.
This Practice Note concentrates on the principal requirements of CA 2014, Pt 1.
For the purposes of this Practice Note, ‘local authority’ denotes a county council in England, a district council for an area in England without a county council, a London borough council, or the Common Council of the City of London.
Part 1 CA 2014 establishes the framework of duties placed on local authorities in relation to the provision of social care...
Local Government
PRACTICE NOTES
England local authority health and social care functions: Health and Wellbeing Boards, Local Healthwatch, scrutiny, complaints advocacy, Integrated Care Partnerships and integrated care strategies, and public health duties
This Practice Note
This Practice Note sets out a range of local authority strategic roles concerning health and social care services, covering obligations to discharge the following duties:
establish and run Health and Wellbeing Boards (HWBs) for health and social care
establish Local Healthwatch organisations to speak for people who use health and social care
examine and oversee health services across their areas
put in place processes for complaints from health service users and feedback handling
create an Integrated Care Partnership (ICP) with the Integrated Care Board (ICB) whose footprint aligns wholly or partly with the local authority area
draw up an integrated care strategy setting out how local needs will be addressed through the functions of the ICB in the area, NHS England, or the pertinent local authorities
Note: on 13 March 2025, the Health Secretary stated that NHS England would be abolished, with many functions returning to the Department of Health and Social Care over the next two years. These changes will unwind the 2012 NHS reorganisation, but implementation will take time, and they are likely to impact the arrangements outlined here as programme progresses and takes effect...
Local Government
PRACTICE NOTES
English local authorities' public health duties, delegated functions and NHS integration: HSCA 2012/NHSA 2006 and 2013 Regulations
This Practice Note sets out the legal obligations placed on local authorities in relation to health services under the Health and Social Care Act 2012 (HSCA 2012). It outlines local authorities’ responsibilities regarding:
the range of services they are obliged to commission or arrange,
duties to encourage integration of services across local authority and NHS borders
NB :
On 13 March 2025, the Health Secretary announced that NHS England would be abolished, with many of its functions returning to the Department of Health and Social Care over the next two years. The reforms will reverse the 2012 reorganisation of the NHS but will take time to implement. They may well affect the arrangements set out in this note...
Local Government
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