Agenda and minutes

The Chair to welcome everyone to the meeting.

The Chair welcomed attendees to the meeting.

To report any changes to the Membership of the meeting.

Apologies were received from Angela Spence, KCSC.

To receive declarations by Members and Officers of the existence and nature of any pecuniary interests or any other significant interest in matters on this agenda.

There were none.

I)               To agree the Minutes of the meeting held on 25 January 2024.

II)              To note progress in actions arising.

RESOLVED:

The Minutes of the Joint Health and Wellbeing Board held on 25 January 2024 were agreed as a correct record of proceedings.

The item was introduced by Bernadette Fry, Assistant Director for Resident Services, RBKC, and Gill Matthews, Health of Homelessness Prevention, WCC, who provided Members with an overview of services provided in each borough:

·       At Kensington and Chelsea, the Housing and Public Health departments had become aware of deterioration in the housing stock in the borough, which was leading to health problems, and developed the Warm and Well programme.

·       This was currently a pilot scheme in Golbourne ward with a further 18 months to operate. A team of a surveyor and a nurse conducted visits to council-owned properties with known leaks or damp, or where vulnerable residents were living, and could book repairs or refer the resident to health services if necessary.

·       Other issues, such as adaptation needs, could also be identified through the visits.

·       Westminster’s Allocations Policy was being reviewed, having last been updated in 2011. The current policy had separate lists for different categories of need, such as medical or overcrowding. As a result, households could be on multiple lists, without their multiple needs being considered holistically.

·       The Rough Sleeping and Homelessness Strategy recognised the impact of homelessness on people’s health and wellbeing, particularly on children.

·       Considerable engagement had taken place on both policies to ensure that they reflected residents’ needs. Formal consultation would start in the summer.

Officers then provided the following information in response to questions from Members:

·       Westminster had a programme to recognise damp and mould issues, which was located with the contact centre.

·       The benefits of efficiencies and avoided costs of different activities were assessed alongside the cost.

The Chair requested that these activities return to the Board at a later date, with an update on progress and case studies.

Seth Mills, Director of Learning Disabilities, introduced the report, providing the following information to the Board:

·       The Plan had been refreshed and set out seven key priorities that would improve the lives of people with learning disabilities. It would apply to both councils and partner organisations.

The Plan is a joint plan with the ICB with a focus on wellbeing and service provision. It had engagement from a range of stakeholders including residents and Councillors.

·       There would be a particular focus on areas in need of improvement.

The Board then heard from Sue Redmond [Full of Life Chair], who stated that:

·       The Plan had been developed in collaboration with services and provided a good opportunity for change.

·       There were particular issues for people with learning disabilities that had not previously been addressed, such as housing, training for staff and services for adults with learning disabilities.

·       Parents were often not considered when designing services for people with learning disabilities, particularly with regard to their emotional needs. Her organisation had secured funding for specialist counselling for parents.

Officers provided the following information in response to questions from Members:

·       The service worked closely with other council departments, the education and health systems, as well as other partners, to identify people with learning disabilities, but acknowledged that not everyone could be identified through this method.

·       The Plan should be brought back to the Board in six months’ time to monitor progress.

·       Departments were developing services to include people with learning disabilities, such as Children’s Services allowing people to access support without a formal diagnosis and expanding universal services to include children with a learning disability, and the Public Health department was redesigning the Healthy Lifestyle Service to ensure there was a dedicated pathway for people with learning disabilities.

Board Members then made the following comments:

·       The Plan and its aims were laudable, but the key test would be in delivery, with actions around housing likely to be particularly crucial.

·       Some families were hesitant to admit that their child may have learning disabilities, and more was needed to encourage interaction with relevant services.

·       More work was needed in schools to prepare young people for independent life, particularly around travel training. A lack of preparation was often a barrier to attending work or college.

RESOLVED:

That the report be noted.

The report was introduced by Gareth Wall, Director of Integrated Commissioning, who provided the following information:

·       The Care Act requires local authorities to produce strategies to guide social work and commissioning activity. This strategy focused on unpaid carers and the ways in which more carers can be assisted to continue their caring role.

·       The strategy was co-produced with Carers who identified six priorities to focus on:

1.     Identify, recognise and appreciate carers

2.     Information and advice

3.     Care and support for those being cared-for

4.     Finance

5.     Housing

6.     Carers’ health and wellbeing

·       It was particularly important to identify more people who are carers in both boroughs, as the existing data indicate that there are many more carers who could benefit from support than are currently known. Another area of discussion was the need to focus on the wellbeing of carers, and to ensure they had access to information and advice.

Officers provided the following information in response to questions from Members:

·       Commissioned services and organisations such as Carers’ Network would use existing projects and programmes to reach carers who had not already been identified. Existing networks could also be used to support carers who lived in different boroughs and may be harder to identify.

·       Some services for carers were offered at evenings and weekends and officers agreed that increasing accessibility to services for carers need to be addressed as identified by Carers who co-produced the strategy.

Board Members then made the following comments:

·       A concern was raised at the use of the phrase ‘old age fragility’, and more specific wording should be used such as cognitive decline or physical health.

RESOLVED:

That the report be noted.

David Bello, Director of Health Partnerships and Mental Health presented the plan which had been endorsed at the previous Board meeting, explaining that the final version of the Plan would be presented at the next Board meeting in July for approval, and would then be implemented.

RESOLVED:

That the report be noted.

Toby Lambert, Executive Director of Strategy and Population Health, North West London Integrated Care System, introduced the item, providing the following information:

·       The Joint Forward Plan had to be published by law, and set out the actions to be taken over the next five years to implement the ICB’s Strategy.

·       A key priority for the ICB was ensuring that residents in all eight North-West London boroughs had equal access to high quality care, achieved through improved efficiency and effectiveness.

·       The NHS’s offer would be tailored to meet local needs, with some likely reallocation of resources.

RESOLVED:

That the report be noted.

David Bello, Director of Health Partnerships and Mental Health, provided a verbal update the Board, stating that negotiations were ongoing for the 2024/25 settlement, and that a delegation was requested to the Bi-Borough Executive Director for Adult Social Care to sign off the allocation.

RESOLVED:

That the Board delegate authority to sign off the allocation to the Bi-Borough Executive Director, Adult Social Care.

Khatija Rasool provided a verbal update, informing the Board that:

·       Westminster had been notified of the assessment in February, and Kensington and Chelsea in March. Both councils provided self-assessments by the deadline.

·       The assessment for Westminster would start on 17 June. Kensington and Chelsea had not yet been informed of the date of the assessment.

No public questions were received.

The next meeting will be hosted by the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, at a venue to be determined, on 18 July 2024.

The Chair confirmed that the next meeting of the Joint Health and Wellbeing Board would take place on Thursday 18 July at 4pm, at a venue to be determined in Kensington and Chelsea.