History, structure and reform

History of the NHS

A brief history of the NHS, as well as short listings of major policy and organisational changes, is provided by the NHS Choices website.

Structure and reform of the NHS

An overview of how the NHS has been reconfigured by recent reforms, along with definitions of what each different part does, is provided by the NHS Choices website. A clearer picture of how the government’s recent reforms have affected the service and its structure is available from the National Audit Office.

The Department of Health has also published a series of factsheets on how the Health and Social Care Act (2012) works.