Improving national health and care policy Our work aims to support more evidence-informed policies on health and social care in the UK.

Our policy team’s work focuses on supporting more evidence-informed policies on health and social care, contributing to better health for people in the UK.

We do this by analysing, understanding, and informing national policies on health and care, with a particular focus on the overall direction of the health system and how it is performing.

Analysing national policy priorities and reform

We track and analyse current policy priorities of the health and social care system, looking at their implementation and impact. We also look at the evidence and history related to different approaches to health system reform (such as the use of competition and collaboration to improve care) and publish work around the politics of health reform.

Read our latest policy analysis

Monitoring health system performance

We analyse overall performance of the health and care system in England and how it changes over time, using routine data to track indicators of health and care quality. As part of this we work closely with other Health Foundation teams, and we fund QualityWatch, a joint programme with the Nuffield Trust.

Read our latest responses

International comparisons

We provide a voice on the overall direction of health and care policy in the UK and the quality of care – including how it compares to health systems in other countries. We are also involved in several international networks and collaborations focused on health and care policy, such as the World Health Organization’s European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies.

Shaping health futures

Our work helps to make sense of the major issues facing health and care in the future, such as changes in the environment or data-driven technology, and what they mean for policy today. This work is being developed through our Shaping Health Futures programme, which involves a mix of synthesising evidence on major issues and convening policymakers around relevant analysis and questions for the future.