Agenda and minutes

No declarations were made.

Decision

Portfolio Members noted their membership and Terms of Reference for 2015/16.

The Chair introduced the report which set out the proposed priorities and work programme for the Community Wellbeing Portfolio for 2015/16. The report also outlined the LGA-wide priorities which the Leadership Board had requested to be developed by the various Boards and Portfolios, which would cover devolution and the future shape of local government; housing; finance; and promoting health and wellbeing.

Mark Norris, Principal Policy Adviser, set out proposals for how the cross-cutting work on promoting health and wellbeing would be taken forward. There would be a particular focus on integration, prevention and early intervention, and the Portfolio would be able to work with council, stakeholders and other partners towards a positive impact on social care and the NHS. This area of work would also link into four overarching priorities for the Portfolio: a future vision for health and care systems; funding for social care and support; the role of councils and place-based leadership in promoting health and wellbeing; and vulnerable people and older people. Members would be asked to nominate the area on which they would most like to focus, and form smaller Policy Groups from across the Portfolio’s membership. Members would also have the opportunity throughout the year to contribute to the cross-cutting work led by other Boards and Portfolios.

In the discussion which followed Members made a number of comments, including:

·         The priorities outlined in the report were good ‘broad brush’ areas of work for Members to consider.

·         Mental health was a very important area to consider, and consideration should be given to care which was undertaken outside of GP surgeries, and how local government had helped to shape the transformation of services.

·         Local government should lead the national debate on the future of health and care, and how the culture of healthcare should change to produce better outcomes for residents.

·         It was important to work closely with other Boards and Portfolios, in particular the Children and Young People Board, as there were many opportunities for cross-cutting work.

·         Integration of end of life care should be considered under one of the work streams.

·         There should be a focus on support for carers, who were also often vulnerable people in their own right, and health inequalities across the country, especially in areas of deprivation.

·         Access to care and public expectation was an important consideration, particularly with regard to GP surgery opening hours.

Decision

Members noted the commissions from the Leadership Board and agreed the Portfolio’s priorities and work programme for 2015/16.

Action

Appointments to outside bodies to be made outside of the meeting.

The Chair introduced the report which set out a proposed model for the Portfolio’s pilot arrangements. It was proposed that the four lead members would meet as a Portfolio Holders Group on a monthly basis, and that four Portfolio Groups were created to cover the areas of the future vision for health and care systems; funding and support for adult social care; the role of councils in promoting health and wellbeing; and vulnerable people and older people.

Members would attend Board-style meetings less regularly, and when meetings occurred they would happen at conferences or events which members would attend as a matter of course. There would be more of a role for individual members to act as regional ambassadors. Members would be asked to report back on the pilot arrangements at an appropriate time.

In the discussion which followed members made a number of comments, including:

·         Members agreed that the pilot arrangements should be reviewed prior to the LGA General Assembly and Conference in approximately nine months.  

·         Members supported the proposal of four Portfolio Groups of six members, each led by one of the lead members who would provide an overall steer.

·         The need for more regional working, and communications with a wider group of members was highlighted.

Following a general discussion on the proposed pilot arrangements, members split into four groups to discuss specific points on how the pilot would operate. Members were asked to consider the following questions:

·         How can we work in more innovative ways while reducing costs to the LGA?

·         Engaging member authorities and councillors:

o   What should we use the Forums to do?

o   Have we made the most of the HWB ambassadors and what could be the role of the portfolio’s ambassadors going forward?

o   How can we keep councillors informed?

·         What does success for these new working arrangements look like?

In the feedback session following the group discussions, members made the following comments:

·         The Portfolio should reconnect with Cabinet members across the country whose remit covered the priority areas of Community Wellbeing.

·         Forum meetings with a wider group of Community Wellbeing members should be used as a sense check to ensure that the Portfolio was progressing effectively.

·         Views of members who were not directly involved with the LGA should be sought to get as wide a view as possible.

·         A forum meeting at the forthcoming National Children and Adult Services Conference should be used to explain the new approach and get views from other members.

·         Smaller regional meetings could potentially be held at town halls across the country.

·         The role of a regional ambassador should be enhanced and refreshed.

·         Communications should be co-ordinated across all work streams, and good use should be made of publications such as First Magazine.

·         Members should provide a link with their local MP on community wellbeing matters.

Decision

Members agreed to the proposals set out in the report regarding the proposed model for the pilot governance structure.

Action

Officers to progress pilot arrangements as set out in the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

Caroline Tapster, Director of Health and Wellbeing System Improvement, introduced the report, which provided an update of activity across the regions to support Health and Wellbeing Boards (HWBs) and the health and wellbeing system. It was highlighted that there was considerable turnover in the system among Chairs, Vice-Chairs and members of HWBs, and that succession planning was not always easy. HWBs were beginning to work closer with Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs), and had identified the need to share best practice across the sector in a better way and to a wider audience.

Cllr Sue Woolley, Chair of the East Midlands HWB, reported on the work of her HWB. She explained in detail some of the work which had been undertaken, issues which had arisen, and how the HWB interacted with CCGs and NHS England.

In the discussion which followed, members raised the following points:

·         Members agreed on the importance of feedback from regional groups such as HWBs, particularly as part of the new portfolio working arrangements.

·         The link between NHS England and local government should be improved to maximise the benefits at local level. Members noted that the strategic relationship with NHS Enfgland was very good, but more work could be undertaken on communication and broader connectivity.

·         Portfolio members should have links with HWBs and CCGs in their own areas, and feec back to the wider portfolio membership.

·         Regional Healthwatch groups provided excellent information on the work of CCGs and health authorities in their own areas.

·         HWBs should give consideration to succession planning to continue their work if a particular leader changed responsibility or election results changed the make up of the Board.

·         HWBs should have a place based approach, with peer reviews to highlight best practice across the country and provide construcuive feedback.

Decision

Members noted the update of activity across the regions the health and wellbeing system.

The Chair introduced the report which included updates on various areas of work, including the Task and Finish Panels on Ageing and Housing and Vulnerable People, Dementia Friendly Communities guidance, the LGA’s ‘Think local, act personal’ partner commitments, and the Asylum, Refugee and Migration Task Group.

Sally Burlington, Head of Programmes, provided a further update on the Syrian refugee resettlement scheme. The Government had agreed to resettle 20,000 Syrian refugees over the following five years, and the LGA Chairman, Cllr Gary Porter, and the Task Group had been working to make sure councils were not disadvantaged a s a result. The LGA had been in frequent communication with council leaders across the country. Negotiations on costings were still underway, but the government had agreed to extend funding beyond the first year after the refugee arrived in the country. There had also been confirmation that the Syrian scheme was unlikely to bring in many unaccompanied asylum seeking children. It was expected that further information and detail on how the scheme will operate would be announced over the forthcoming weeks.

In the discussion which followed members made a number of comments, including:

·         It was currently unclear which councils would agree to house refugees and which would not, but it was hoped that all local government would assist in the resettlement of refugees.

·         Dispersal of refugees was an important issue for clarification with the government. The dispersal scheme was run by Serco, but it was important that the right placements were made for different groupings of refugees.

·         Unaccompanied asylum seeking children would be the most vulnerable, and therefore it would be preferable to find family units in the region or who were already established in the UK where possible.

Decision

Members noted the updates included in the report.

Decision

The minutes of the meeting held on 10 June 2015 were agreed.