Local authorities' health and wellbeing boards are likely to be key to pharmacy's success in the new NHS, industry leaders have said, as the government unveiled its plans for the boards to lead "joined-up working" in healthcare.

In a consultation launched this week, the government clarified the role of health and wellbeing boards, setting out proposals for them to oversee local commissioning and ensure healthcare providers worked together across the NHS.

From April 2013, clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) will need to involve health and wellbeing boards in the commissioning of local clinical services. And, if CCGs fail to take full account of local needs assessments, the government has urged boards to make this known in "very clear and certain terms".

"The boards will look at public health and that's very much something that pharmacy can deliver" Claire Ward, IPF

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Health minister Anne Milton said the boards would help the new NHS deliver "much more integration between health and care services", ensuring patients received "seamless care". And the role of health and wellbeing boards could make them even more important to pharmacy than CCGs, said the Independent Pharmacy Federation (IPF). "The boards will look at public health and that's very much something that pharmacy can deliver," said IPF chief executive Claire Ward.

But Ms Ward warned that many boards may be unaware of what services pharmacy could provide. "It's important to make sure health and wellbeing boards understand what pharmacy does – a lot of local authority representatives don't actually know," she told C+D. "Pharmacy needs to promote what it does and offer solutions to public health problems."

NPA chief executive Mike Holden agreed that the partnership between pharmacy and local authorities would be "crucial". He added that initial meetings with health and wellbeing boards had been "very encouraging", but warned there was still work to do.

"This will not automatically translate into pharmacy representation on key committees – there is a huge engagement challenge ahead for our sector, which requires leadership and action at all levels," he said.

Mr Holden added that the boards would play a key role in preparing pharmaceutical needs assessments – due to form the basis of the new control of entry regulations. "It is vitally important that health and wellbeing boards understand the importance of their role in developing [these] assessments," he argued. "The recent announcement on market entry is a reminder that these documents must be right – neither defensive nor loose, but an accurate representation of fact."

The government's consultation on health and wellbeing boards will be open until September 28.