Integrated Care Systems (ICS) were designed to bring together health care, social care, and community services so that people receive joined-up and person-centred support. We are often the ones working with people who fall through the cracks, who don’t fit neatly into a single pathway, but who need joined-up care the most. If ICS are going to work in practice, third sector organisations like Bridge Support must be at the heart of them, shaping how care is designed and delivered.
Why the Third Sector Matters
Charities and community organisations are often the closest to the very people ICS are designed for. We see the daily realities of mental illness, addiction, homelessness, trauma, and isolation, not just as challenges but as human experiences.
That close proximity gives us insight. We know what services are missing. We know what approaches work. We know what makes the difference between crisis and recovery.
At Bridge Support, for example, our work covers supported housing, recovery education, peer-led support, and flexible community-based mental health services. None of these sit in a single NHS pathway, yet they are often the very things that help people stay well and avoid hospital admissions. If ICS are really serious about prevention, recovery, and long term sustainability, then the third sector is essential.
From Consultation to Co-Design
Too often, charities are brought into ICS conversations too late in the game and once decisions have already been made. We are often consulted but rarely co-designers. This has to change.
True integration means shared ownership of the strategy, not just the delivery. It means creating structures where lived experience and frontline expertise shape priorities for service delivery from the outset. It means recognising that community organisations are more than just service providers, they have knowledge, ideas and connections. We’ve seen how services flourish when designed with, not for, the people who use them. The same principle applies at a system level. Co-production is the foundation for impactful services.
Innovation from the Ground Up
One of the greatest strengths of the third sector is the ability to innovate and try out new ideas. They are often free of some of the red tape that larger institutions have to deal with and can test new approaches and ideas, try new services and adapt quickly to changing needs.
Bridge’s Recovery College is a great example of this. It was born from the recognition that education and empowerment are critical to recovery. It has helped people through their recovery journey beyond being a “patient” and on to rebuilding confidence, skills, and independence. The outcomes speak for themselves: fewer A&E admissions, higher employment, and improved wellbeing.
This kind of innovation starts in communities. ICS must create space to nurture, scale, and learn. Otherwise, the system risks losing some of its most effective tools for transformation.
Shared Accountability, Shared Outcomes
For ICS to succeed, accountability must be collective. Too often, charities are judged solely on outputs such as numbers of people supported or sessions delivered, while the system as a whole takes credit for broader outcomes.
We need a different approach. One where commissioners, NHS partners, and third sector providers share responsibility for results. One where outcomes like recovery, stability, and independence are valued alongside activity metrics. One where data flows both ways, so learning is a collective process. That kind of shared accountability not only builds trust but it also ensures that services are judged by the difference they make in people’s lives, not just by the numbers on a spreadsheet.
A Call to Action
ICS have the potential to reshape health and social care for the better, but only if they live up to their founding principle: integration. And integration isn’t just about structures or governance. It’s about relationships, trust, and shared power.
The third sector mustn’t be made to sit on the sidelines of ICS. We must be at the centre, helping to design services and define what success looks like. Without it, the system can’t truly reflect the realities of the people it serves.
Our vision at Bridge Support is of a mental health system where NHS and community organisations work hand in hand together. Where the expertise of lived experience is valued alongside clinical knowledge and where recovery isn’t a goal, but an expectation.
That’s what true integration looks like. We’ll keep doing what we’ve always done, putting people at the centre, building services that reflect their reality, and working alongside others to create systems that support recovery at every stage.
If you’d like to learn more about how Bridge Support partners with commissioners and systems to deliver recovery-focused mental health services, visit here.
