Spotlight on Colin Tate
Tell us a little bit about yourself
I have been working in the NHS since 1992 in both technical and managerial roles. I was one of the six founding federation directors of Primary Care Manchester in 2014 which covers central Manchester, back when Manchester had three CCGs. The following year I was one of the founding directors of the city-wide federation The Manchester Primary Care Partnership, covering North/Central/South Manchester, primarily set up to bid for the Prime Minister's Challenge Fund, which we were successful. I continue as a director for both federations leading on areas of governance and finance.
I hold a doctorate in business administration for my work on "General practitioner: Understanding personal qualities required to deliver 21st century healthcare from a business perspective".
When did you join NHS Confederation and why?
As a member of the previously formed national association of federations group, alongside other members I joined the NHS Confederation in early 2021 following initial discussions about forming a national federation network alongside other existing NHS Confederation groups, which would offer a route into senior NHS players while helping bring credence to the group of federations.
As a strong believer in the values of the NHS Confederation, I felt this would help dispel some of the ‘then’ views of federations being cash cows for private consumption – which of course is not the case, although there unfortunately are a few similar business entities that do.
Although federations still have some way to go, being a member of the NHS Confederation has allowed our voice to be heard nationally; and continues to do so.
What excites you the most about the direction of the NHS Confederation, and how will you contribute towards it?
The NHS Confederation has credibility with senior NHS teams which has helped with the realisation that ‘at-Scale’ organisations are a natural fit within the new ICS systems. The joining of the NHS Confederation PCN and Federation networks goes some way to forming a better cohesive view of primary care as a whole, albeit optom/pharma/dental are still sitting on the verges, but this view still requires additional effort to clarify the layers within primary care in terms of contracting.
As a member of this group I will continue to promote these layers at national and local levels and how primary care fits into the overall NHS strategy.
What does it mean to you to be a member of the Primary Care Network Advisory Group?
While the NHS Confederation has a good reputation within the higher echelons of NHS England, it can only represent primary care, if itself understands the pitfalls and innovations of navigating the system. This advisory group is where the NHS Confederation can understand issues on the ground and how networks are overcoming them. As a member of the group I can reassure my own members that their issues and innovations are being shared, both to other networks and to commissioners, while being best placed to hear how others are overcoming the same.
What is something members of the network, staff and even other Advisory Board members might be surprised to know about you eg; what is your proudest achievement? How would you fill an unexpected day off?
You may be interested to hear that, as a recipient of a gift, I have been given the title of Lord Colin Tate. This of course is NOT a peerage but due to the purchase of a piece of land in Cumbria, I have obtained title of Lord of Hougan Manor.
My proudest achievement, other than my children and marriage will be gaining my doctorate degree.
Depending on the weather I would spend an unexpected day off either boating, tinkering with my classic MGB or accompanying my wife to eg. garden centres.
