Champs Public Health Collaborative System Leadership Meeting | Key messages | August 2026

The Champs Directors of Public Health met for their system leadership meeting on Friday 21st August 2026. The key messages from the meeting are below, along with items of good news and gratitude.

1. Regional update from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) – Work continues on the development of a new target operating model as NHS England staff transition into the department. As well as this, a number of groups have been stood up to support the Government’s policy priorities including ending rough sleeping, neighbourhood health and mental health and substance misuse. The department has also launched a project to support up to 50 people who are working towards specialist registration by portfolio assessment (SRbPA) for public health in the next two years.
2. Screening and immunisation update – The North West will soon be one of the first areas in the country to offer self-sampling for human papillomavirus (HPV) and will be inviting women who are overdue an HPV screening to order home kits. Bowel screening for those aged 80 also continues and due to more sensitive tests should soon start to see an increase in detection rates.
3. UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) update – Monitoring continues on a small outbreak of measles as well as an outbreak of salmonella across the country.
4. Population Health – NHS Cheshire and Merseyside is progressing the subregion’s WorkWell programme which will give personalised, holistic support to people who can’t start, keep, or return to work due to a health problem or disability.
5. North West Public Health Conference in Cheshire and Merseyside – Work will soon start on the subregion’s turn to host this conference, which is due to take place next year.
6. Ketamine – Champs Directors continue to identify opportunities to collaborate across the subregion on public health challenges and have discussed Ketamine and the need to provide support for young people as well as adults with severe issues relating to Ketamine use.

Good News and Gratitude

• All Together Fairer – On 17th July, Mayor Steve Rotheram and Liverpool City Region leaders confirmed Liverpool City Region as a Marmot City Region, reinforcing a long-term commitment to improving health and reducing inequalities through prevention. As a Marmot City Region, the Combined Authority will embed the Marmot principles across its devolved responsibilities, demonstrating leadership in putting health at the centre of decisions on transport, housing, skills, regeneration and economic development.
• All Together Smokefree – NHS Cheshire and Merseyside’s Programme Director for Population Health, Ceriann Tunnah, was recently interviewed by ITV News about the support available for mothers looking to quit smoking. The news package also featured Mia Rogerson, a mum from Middlewich who stopped smoking in 2024 while pregnant with her first child. She has remained smokefree ever since and is now 26 weeks pregnant with her second baby.
• Drugs and alcohol mis-use – The Cheshire and Merseyside Inpatient Detoxification Consortium, which supports some of the most highly vulnerable people in the subregion, has won the Collaborative Procurement Initiative Award at the National Procurement Awards. It will also go on to be named the overall national winner across all categories. This programme brings together all nine public health leads in Cheshire and Merseyside and has seen 260 treatment places made along this pathway (a 49% increase from previous year), with 75% of treatment placements being completed fully, compared to a national average of 47%. The enabling function is commissioned by the Champs Support Team and led by Gary Rickwood, Public Health Principal and Lead Commissioner from Wirral Council.
• Gambling – Liverpool’s campaign launched during the 2026 FIFA World Cup to raise awareness of the harm of gambling advertising has reported major success with campaign content reaching over 500,000 social media accounts. The campaign called ‘If only I knew’ was developed by national gambling harm prevention organisation Chapter One in partnership with Liverpool City Council’s Public Health team, after local research from Liverpool John Moores University found that almost one in eight Liverpool adults who gamble experience some form of gambling harm.
• Research – Knowsley has successfully appointed a Local Authority Research Practitioner (LARP). The purpose of this role is to help local authorities improve their ability to do research and use it effectively. They look at what research is already happening, figure out what needs to be done next, help different teams apply for money to fund research, and teach staff how to do quality research.
• Breastfeeding – During World Breastfeeding Week (1-7 August), Knowsley reminded residents of the importance of breastfeeding with the release of short videos with mothers and babies. The Council also celebrated the news that breastfeeding rates have increased in the borough.
• Hepatitis C – A number of drug services across Cheshire and Merseyside have met NHS England’s target of 100% of people using the service being offered a test to detect Hepatitis C, one of the most common blood-borne viruses in the country. Along with being offered the test, the target called for services to then successfully test 90% of those users and ensure that 75% of those who tested positive start treatment. This new way of tackling Hepatitis C (called micro-elimination) is part of a movement to eliminate the virus as a major health concern.
• Champs Directors wish to express their gratitude to a number of colleagues who after many years of service are moving on from their roles. This includes NHS Cheshire and Merseyside’s Associate Director of Partnerships and Sustainability, Dave Sweeney, and Place Director for Wirral, Simon Banks. Shaun Dunbabin, the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority’s Lead Officer for Health Inequalities has also stepped down. All three colleagues have made fantastic contributions over the years and they will be missed.  
• Dave Bradburn, Director of Public Health for Wirral, will be stepping down as Chair of the Champs Public Health Collaborative Executive Board at the end of the month as part of a regular rotation of Chairs. From September, Debbie Watson, Director of Public Health for Warrington will be Chair of the Board and will be supported by Vice Chair Matt Ashton, Director of Public Health for Liverpool. Dave’s fellow Champs Directors have expressed their thanks to him for his excellent leadership during his time as Chair.