DORSET'S Health and Wellbeing Board is being asked to back a package of spending and service priorities worth about £160 million, aimed at supporting community-based care, prevention and closer integration between health and social care services.

A meeting in Dorchester on Wednesday (17 June) will consider a series of key decisions on the Better Care Fund, including whether to approve the 2025/26 end-of-year report and sign off proposals for 2026/27.

The meeting is expected to focus on how Dorset has performed against national Better Care Fund targets, with report papers showing mixed results.

While emergency admissions rose during the spring, the year-end total remained below plan, although discharge delays improved enough to meet the annual target.

Councillors are expected to note the scale of the pooled budget for 2026/27, put at £160.8 million, and the role it will play in funding neighbourhood health initiatives, unpaid carers' support, intermediate care, reablement services and technology designed to help people stay independent for longer.

The board will be told that the county's 2025/26 Better Care Fund income totalled £156.5 million, with spending at £156.1 million by the end of the year, and that no major in-year activity changes exceeded five per cent of total expenditure.

As part of the decisions due to be taken, the meeting will be asked to endorse the continued investment in integrated neighbourhood teams, extra care housing, disabled facilities grants and Future Care programmes intended to reduce hospital admissions and delays in discharge.