About Us

The Northern England Clinical Senate covers a larger geographical area than many other organisations. It has the same footprint as the North of England Clinical Networks, serving a population of over 3 million people in North Cumbria, the North East and some of North Yorkshire.


We are a non-statutory body, the role of which is to provide independent clinical advice to any commissioner or provider of health or social care.  The Senate can be approached for advice at any point in the development of service change proposals and we can work with organisations at several points as the proposals develop.

The Senate has a more general, strategic remit than clinical networks, working with commissioners and providers to help them consider the strategic impact of proposed changes and offering credibility to decisions. The Senate provides a range of clinical advice from acting as a critical friend during the early stages of service change proposals through to a formal review to inform the NHS England assurance process.

The process for securing advice is very simple and we can be flexible in how we work. In the first instance, please discuss your request with the Clinical Senate Council Chair, Professor Andrew Cant (andrew.cant@nhs.net) - or the Senate Manager, Joanne Poole  (joanne.poole1@nhs.net).



Below are important documents: