OpenLegislation

The NHS Direct (Establishment and Constitution) Order 2004

S.I. 2004/569 · Made 28 February 2004

Original text. legislation.gov.uk does not revise statutory instruments, so later amendments are not shown here. Changes made to it are listed under each provision when known.

NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE, ENGLAND

Made 28th February 2004

Laid before Parliament 9th March 2004

Coming into force 1st April 2004

The Secretary of State for Health, in exercise of the powers conferred upon him by sections 11(1), (2) and (4) of, and paragraph 9(7)(b) of Schedule 5 to, the National Health Service Act 1977f1, and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, and after consultation with such bodies as he recognises represent officers who in his opinion are likely to be transferred or affected by transfers in pursuance of the Order, hereby makes the following Order:

Annotations to the whole text

Footnotes

f1

1977 c. 49; section 11 was amended by section 2(1) of, and paragraph 2 of Schedule 1 to, the Health Authorities Act 1995 (c. 17) (“the 1995 Act”) and section 65 of, and paragraphs 4 and 6 of Schedule 4 to, the Health Act 1999 (c. 8) (“the 1999 Act”); sub-paragraph (7) was inserted in paragraph 9 of Schedule 5 by section 1 of, and paragraph 7(2) of Schedule 1 to, the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990 (c. 19) and amended by section 2(1) of, and paragraph 60(b) of Schedule 1 to, the 1995 Act and section 1(3) of, and paragraphs 1, 34(1) and (3)(b) of Schedule 1 to, the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002 (c. 17) (“the 2002 Act”). The functions of the Secretary of State under these provisions are, so far as exercisable in relation to Wales, transferred to the National Assembly for Wales by article 2(a) of, and Schedule 1 to, the National Assembly for Wales (Transfer of Functions) Order 1999, S.I. 1999/672; see the entry in Schedule 1 for the National Health Service Act 1977 as amended by section 66(4) and (5)(a) of the 1999 Act, section 67(1) of, and paragraph 12(1) and (3) of Schedule 5 to the Health and Social Care Act 2001 (c. 15) (“the 2001 Act”) and section 196 of, and Part 4 of Schedule 14 to, the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Act 2003 (c. 43) on a date to be appointed.

Contents

  1. 1Citation, commencement, application and interpretation
  2. 2Establishment of the Authority
  3. 3Functions of the Authority
  4. 4Constitution of the Authority
  5. 5Remuneration of members
  6. 6Public meetings
  7. 7Transfer of rights and liabilities
  8. 8Transfer of property
  9. 9Transfer of officers
  10. Signature
  11. Schedule 1Schedule of National Health Service trusts and Primary Care Trusts
  12. Schedule 2Schedule of National Health Service trusts
  13. Explanatory note

1Citation, commencement, application and interpretation

(1)

This Order may be cited as the NHS Direct (Establishment and Constitution) Order 2004 and shall come into force on 1st April 2004.

(2)

This Order applies to England only.

(3)

In this Order—

  • “the Act” means the National Health Service Act 1977;

  • “the Authority” means the NHS Direct Special Health Authority established by this Order; and

  • “NHS Direct services” means services relating to the provision of health related information and advice to the public under the name NHS Direct before 1st April 2004.

2Establishment of the Authority

There is hereby established a Special Health Authority which shall be known as NHS Direct.

3Functions of the Authority

(1)

Subject to and in accordance with such directions as the Secretary of State may give to the Authorityf1, the Authority shall perform—

(a)

such functions in connection with the provision of health related information and advice; and

(b)

such other functions,

as the Secretary of State may direct.

4Constitution of the Authority

The Authority shall consist of—

(a)

a chairman;

(b)

5 members who are not officers of the Authority; and

(c)

5 officers of the Authority including the persons who for the time being hold the office of Chief Executive, Director of Finance and Clinical Director of the Authority.

5Remuneration of members

The Authority is hereby specified for the purposes of paragraph 9(7)(b) of Schedule 5 to the Act (definition of “relevant authority” for the purposes of paying remuneration to members of certain Special Health Authorities).

6Public meetings

The Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960f1 shall apply to the Authority.

7Transfer of rights and liabilities

All rights and liabilities of a National Health Service trust or Primary Care Trust listed in Schedule 1 relating to NHS Direct services are transferred to the Authority and are therefore enforceable by or, as the case may be, against it.

8Transfer of property

All property of the National Health Service trusts and Primary Care Trusts listed in Schedule 1 identified as property transferring to the Authority in the document produced by the Department of Health and entitled “Schedule of property transferring from National Health Service trusts and Primary Care Trusts to NHS Direct on 1st April 2004” and dated 18th February 2004 is transferred to the Authority.

9Transfer of officers

(1)

This paragraph applies to an officer of—

(a)

a National Health Service trust or Primary Care Trust listed in Schedule 1,

(b)

a National Health Service trust listed in Schedule 2, or

(c)

the Prescription Pricing Authorityf1,

who on 31st March 2004 is wholly or mainly engaged in NHS Direct services and who was notified in a letter posted on or before 9th January 2004 that he was to be transferred to the Authority.

(2)

Any officer to whom paragraph (1) applies shall, on 1st April 2004, be transferred to the employment of the Authority.

(3)

The contract of employment of an officer transferred under paragraph (2)—

(a)

is not terminated by the transfer; and

(b)

has effect from the time of the transfer as if originally made between the officer and the Authority.

(4)

Without prejudice to paragraph (3)—

(a)

all the rights, powers, duties and liabilities of the body from which an officer is transferred, under or in connection with its contract of employment with an officer transferred under paragraph (2), shall by virtue of this paragraph be transferred to the Authority; and

(b)

anything done before the date of the transfer by or in relation to the body from which that officer is so transferred, in respect of the officer or his contract of employment, shall be deemed to have been done by or in relation to the Authority.

(5)

Paragraphs (2) to (4) do not transfer an officer’s contract of employment, or the rights, powers, duties and liabilities under or in connection with it, if that officer objects to the transfer to the Authority and informs the body from which he would be transferred of that objection by 31st March 2004.

(6)

Where an officer objects as mentioned in paragraph (5), his contract of employment with the body from which he would be transferred shall be terminated immediately before the date on which the transfer would occur, but he shall not be treated, for any purpose, as having been dismissed from that body.

(7)

This article is without prejudice to any right of an officer to terminate his contract of employment if a substantial change is made to his detriment in his working conditions; but no such right shall arise by reason only that, under this article, the identity of his employer changes unless the officer shows that, in all the circumstances, the change is a significant change and is to his detriment.

Signature

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Health

Rosie Winterton

Minister of State,

Department of Health

28th February 2004

Schedule 1Schedule of National Health Service trusts and Primary Care Trusts

National Health Service trust or Primary Care TrustEstablishment Order
Avon Ambulance Service National Health Service TrustS.I. 1991/2320
Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Ambulance and Paramedic Service National Health Service TrustS.I. 1992/2538
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mental Health Partnership National Health Service TrustS.I. 2002/647f1
Essex Ambulance Service National Health Service TrustS.I. 1991/2345
Greater Manchester Ambulance Service National Health Service TrustS.I. 1993/2600
Hampshire Ambulance Service National Health Service TrustS.I. 1992/2504
Hillingdon Primary Care TrustS.I. 2000/209
Kensington and Chelsea Primary Care TrustS.I. 2002/1004
Lancashire Ambulance Service National Health Service TrustS.I. 1993/2601
Mayday Healthcare National Health Service TrustS.I. 1993/27
Mid-Staffordshire General Hospitals National Health Service TrustS.I. 1992/2558
Newham Primary Care TrustS.I. 2001/350
North East Ambulance Service National Health Service TrustS.I. 1999/797
Nottingham City Primary Care TrustS.I. 2001/181
Sheffield Children’s National Health Service TrustS.I. 1991/2399f2
Southwark Primary Care TrustS.I. 2002/1003
Surrey Oaklands National Health Service TrustS.I. 1998/653
Tees, East and North Yorkshire Ambulance Service National Health Service TrustS.I. 1999/798
Two Shires Ambulance National Health Service TrustS.I. 1992/2577
West Midlands Ambulance Service National Health Service TrustS.I. 1993/29
West Yorkshire Metropolitan Ambulance Service National Health Service TrustS.I. 1992/2493
West Country Ambulance Service National Health Service TrustS.I. 1993/814

Schedule 2Schedule of National Health Service trusts

National Health Service trustEstablishment Order
Bedford Hospital National Health Service TrustS.I. 1991/2329
Plymouth Hospitals National Health Service TrustS.I. 1993/2568

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order provides for the establishment and constitution of a Special Health Authority, to be known as NHS Direct (“the Authority”), to exercise functions in connection with the provision of health related information and advice and such other functions as the Secretary of State may direct it to perform. The functions of the Authority have previously been carried out by the Department of Health and 22 National Health Service trusts under the name of NHS Direct.

Article 2 of the Order establishes the Authority, the functions of which are described in article 3 and are to be specified more particularly in directions given by the Secretary of State. Provision is also made for the constitution of the Authority (article 4), for the remuneration of its members (article 5), for the admission of the public to meetings (article 6), for the transfer of rights and liabilities (article 7) and the transfer of property (article 8) and officers (article 9). A copy of the document referred to in article 8 is available from the Department of Health, Quarry House, Quarry Hill, Leeds, West Yorkshire LS2 7UE.