Agenda and minutes

The Chairman of the Health and Wellbeing Board, Councillor Caroline Stock welcomed all attendees to the meeting being held at Hendon Town Hall and noted the Covid-secure measures in place throughout the meeting.

It was RESOLVED that the minutes of the previous meeting of the Health and Wellbeing Board held on 8 April 2021 be agreed as a correct record.

Apologies for absence were received from:

-          Dr Tamara Benjamin who was substituted by Dr Julie George, Deputy Director of Public Health

-          Dr Clare Stephens

-          Caroline Collier

Dr Charlotte Benjamin, Vice-Chair of the HWBB declared an interest on behalf of herself and Dr Nikesh Dattani, who attended the meeting virtually, in relation to the relevant agenda items as primary care providers via their respective GP Practices and GP Federation in the interest of transparency.

Councillor Sachin Rajput declared an interest in relation to agenda item 16 by virtue of being a Trustee of Nicholl & Daniel Homes.

None.

None.

The Board noted the standing item on the agenda which lists the frequently used acronyms in HWBB reports.

The Board noted the items due to be reported to future HWBB meetings including the items on ICS and ICP. The Annual Safeguarding Adults report will also be included on the Forward Work Programme (Action: FWP).

RESOLVED that the Board noted the Forward Work Programme.

The Chairman welcomed Deborah Sanders, Chief Executive Royal Free Hospital who provided an update on Barnet Hospital, the pressures experienced in the system around primary care patients and the number of patients treated in respect of COVID-19. Dawn Wakeling, Executive Director for Adults and Health noted the increase in the number of referrals and particularly for mental health services and the importance of continued dialogue amongst partners to address issues effectively.

Dr Julie George provided an update on the COVID-19 cases within Barnet and noted that there have been fewer cases of Covid resulting in hospitalisations compared to past peak periods. She noted the concerns around the anticipation in the increase of the number of Long COVID cases. Given the easing of COVID restrictions, people are urged to wear face coverings, consider social distancing and consider the number of people they come into contact with.

Dr Charlotte Benjamin spoke about the vaccination programme noting that 231,000 people have been vaccinated in Barnet with 171,000 people having received their second vaccination dose. Dr Benjamin informed the Board about the significant amount of work taking place across NCL to promote and encourage vaccination uptake. The engagement work includes a number of workstreams designed to inform and engage with residents by answering queries around the vaccine and delivering webcasts in different languages for communities in Barnet.

The Chairman thanked the Board for the update and the discussion.

The Chairman welcomed the final JHWB Strategy for Barnet 2021-2025 which has been developed through extensive engagement with residents.

Dr George presented the item which was previously discussed in April and includes the consultation report and one page summary. In terms of future reporting, she noted that the Board will be updated on the implementation of the Strategy. 

It was RESOLVED:

1. That the Health and Wellbeing Board approved the final version of the Barnet Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy 2021-25 for implementation.

2. That the Health and Wellbeing Board noted and discussed as above the proposed approach to outcome monitoring and implementation plan, to be fully developed and presented at HWB Board in September.

The Chairman welcomed Richard Dale, Executive Director of Transition at NCL CCG. Mr Dale presented (virtually) and summarised the key points regarding the development of the NCL ICS to the Board. He noted that the engagement work will feed into the development of the plans which includes working closely with Healthwatch and other partners to help shape plans and ensure that the system incorporates patients’ views.

The Board noted the presentation.

The Chairman welcomed the report and commended the extraordinary integration work delivered throughout the pandemic.

Dawn Wakeling, Fiona Bateman and Colette Wood spoke about the importance of joint working and the continued commitment towards partnership collaboration, including taking into account the safeguarding perspective.

It was RESOLVED that the Health and Wellbeing Board noted and commented as above on the report.

The Chairman welcomed Dr Elliott Roy-Highley who presented and provided a summary of the report to the Board. Dr Roy-Highley spoke about the overarching aims and the comprehensive action plan. He spoke about the need to engage and build further collaboration with partners. The Board was encouraged to share and disseminate the suicide prevention training link contained within the report. Update reports will also be brought to the Board.

Following a query from the Board regarding measures being taken, it was noted that a number of actions will be implemented to address and reduce risk factors and support a broader range of people including through sign posting.

Dr Roy-Highley welcomed the opportunity to engage with family services and adult social care services and feed into the Strategy.

The Board agreed the motion to include an additional recommendation to read: 

That the Strategy incorporate views from Family services, children’s and adult social care services

It was therefore RESOLVED that

1.    That the Board discussed as above and noted the report.

2.    That the Strategy incorporate views from Family services, children’s and adult social care services

3.    That the Board receive an annual update in 2022 and 2023 following a review of progress against the 2021-2023 action plan.

4.    That the Board receive the 2023-25 action plan in 2023.

The Chairman welcomed Joanne Murfit, Programme Director for NCL CCG Strategic Reviews of Community and Mental Health Services.

Daniel Morgan, Director of Commissioning NCL CCG, also joined the meeting and spoke about waiting times and actions being taken to address this across NCL and involving parents and children. 

Chris Munday highlighted the importance of ensuring that the review will involve parents, children and carers and that they feed into the review. He welcomed the opportunity to work together. Fiona Bateman expressed support towards the review from safeguarding boards point of view.

The Chairman thanked the Board for the discussion and noted that the Board would welcome an update report in the future. (Action FWP)

It was RESOLVED that the Health and Wellbeing Board noted the progress of the reviews of community and mental health services and advise on further engagement actions that would support these reviews.

Nitish Lakhman, Healthwatch Manager, presented the slides to the Board and provided a summary. The Board welcomed the presentation and Fiona Bateman noted the importance of ensuring a clear understanding about digital exclusion.

The Board noted the presentation.

The Chairman noted that this item will be discussed a future meeting of the HWBB. (Action FWP)

The Chairman invited Louisa Songer – Public Health Strategist who joined the meeting. Ms Songer presented the report and spoke about the creation of the homelessness forum which will aim to take forward recommendations from the needs assessment and report into Housing & Growth Committee and HWBB where appropriate.

The Board welcomed Joe Lee CEO of Homeless Action in Barnet, who informed the Board about the current situation with homelessness in Barnet. He discussed the experience of a service user and the importance of access to health care and services for rough sleepers.

Chris Munday highlighted the need to refer to children and young people as part of the assessment, particularly links between care leavers and homelessness. Ms Songer stated that going forward the work will work together with Children’s services to address this issue.  

The Chairman thanked the Board for the discussion.

It was RESOLVED:

1.    That the Board note the finding and recommendations of the needs assessment.

2.    The members of the Board commit to joint working to addressing the needs identified through the needs assessment of this underserved population.

3.    That the Board agree to receive future reports on action plans and progress on implementation of the recommendations of the needs assessment.

The Chairman welcomed Emily Bowler, Head of Assurance and Business Development and John Bailey Head of Elections who presented the new Boundary Review outcomes and its implications on Barnet.

The Board noted the presentation.

None.