Integrated Care Boards (ICB) have a legal duty to provide health services for patients registered with NHS GPs within their geographical area. The amount of money received from the Government is fixed and cannot be exceeded. It is the ICBs’ job is to get the best value for this money by spending it wisely on your behalf.
NHS organisations nationally and across the country have developed Clinical Commissioning Policies for many common healthcare interventions with the following key principles:
- Improve the quality of care for everyone
- Reduce the risk of harm to patients
- Minimise unwarranted variation in service provision
- Optimise the use of finite resources and ensure any money saved is spent on effective treatments.
This means that only treatments with good evidence-base will be funded by the NHS and only when the clinical needs of the patient require so, as described in our Clinical Commissioning Policies.
Funding Clinical Treatments – NHS Surrey and Sussex ICB
From 1 April 2026, NHS Surrey Heartlands ICB and NHS Sussex ICB operate as a single organisation. The newly established NHS Surrey and Sussex ICB now has responsibility for hosting the process for managing funding applications for patients registered with a GP practice within Surrey Heath, Ash, or Farnham, which previously sat within the Frimley ICB area.
During the transition period, the existing clinical commissioning policies for Surrey Heartlands, Sussex and Frimley ICBs will remain in place until a single aligned policy framework is established. A single Surrey and Sussex IFR framework will be introduced in due course. This page will be updated when changes are agreed.
If you have any questions about clinical policies or processes, please contact:
To ensure the correct policy is applied during the transition period, clinicians and patients should refer to the policy linked to the patient’s registered GP practice.
Select the relevant area below to view the current policies.
Funding Clinical Treatments – Surrey (for GP practices in Surrey Heath, Ash and Farnham)
For patients registered with a GP practice in Surrey Heath, Ash and Farnham.
These policies describe when treatments and interventions are routinely funded by the NHS and when specific eligibility criteria must be met.
Funding Clinical Treatments – Surrey (except for GP practices in Surrey Heath, Ash and Farnham)
For patients registered with a Surrey GP practice, except for GP practices in Surrey Heath, Ash and Farnham.
Clinical policies describe when treatments, procedures and interventions:
- are not routinely funded and require an Individual Funding Request, or
- are funded when specific clinical criteria or thresholds are met.
They support clinicians in making consistent referral and treatment decisions based on:
- national clinical guidance
- clinical evidence
- population health considerations
- responsible use of NHS resources.
The policies are:
[ARCHIVED CONTENT] Policies and Processes - ICS - Surrey Heartlands
- CLIN02 Treatments Not Routinely Funded 1 v1.7 [docx] 203KB
- CLIN03 Treatments Not Routinely Funded 2 v1.7 [docx] 266KB
- CLIN05 Assisted Conception Policy v1.4 [docx] 596KB
Funding Clinical Treatments – Sussex
For patients registered with a Sussex GP practice.
These policies describe when treatments, procedures and interventions:
- are not routinely funded and require an Individual Funding Request, or
- are funded when specific clinical criteria or thresholds are met.
They support clinicians in making consistent referral and treatment decisions based on:
- national clinical guidance
- clinical evidence
- population health considerations
- responsible use of NHS resources.
The policies are:
[ARCHIVED CONTENT] Policies and procedures for NHS Sussex
- SX050 Clinically Effective Commissioning Programme Clinical Policies