Agenda and draft minutes

To consider and approve the minutes of the previous meeting held on 20 November 2025 as a true and correct record of the proceedings and to be signed by the Chair.

Resolved:-

That the minutes of the meeting held on 20 November 2025 were approved as a true and correct record of the proceedings.

To receive declarations of interest from Members in respect of items listed on the agenda.

There were no declarations of interest.

To receive questions relating to items of business on the agenda from members of the public or press who are present at the meeting.

There were no questions from members of the public or the press.

To consider whether the press and public should be excluded from the meeting during consideration of any part of the agenda.

There were no items on the agenda that required the exclusion of the press or members of the public.

This item is to receive a report and presentation in relation to the Safeguarding Adults Board Annual Report 2024-2025 and the Safeguarding Adults Board Strategic Plan 2025-2028, in order to consider the work of the Board over the previous year and to assist the Health Select Commission to identify aspects it may wish to consider in more detail during that period.

This item had previously been considered by the Improving Lives Select Commission, and was brought under the Health Select Commission’s remit under changes to the Council’s Constitution in the 2025/26 municipal year.

The Chair welcomed Moira Wilson, the Independent Chair of the Rotherham Safeguarding Adults Board (RSAB), Jackie Scantlebury, Safeguarding Adults Board Manager, Sally Morris-Shaw, Head of Service for Localities and acting Head of Service for Safeguarding and Gemma Cross,  Head of Safeguarding, The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust (TRFT) to the meeting and invited Moira Wilson to introduce the reports and presentations.

Members received a detailed presentation on both the RSAB Annual Report for 2024-2025 and the RSAB Strategic Plan for 2025-2028. The RSAB Independent Chair explained that the annual report summarised work completed by March 2025, and confirmed that the Board intended to present future reports to the Health Select Commission in a more timely manner.

They described that the previous three?year plan, covering 2022-2025, had focused on re?establishing core safeguarding principles following the disruption caused by the COVID?19 pandemic. The emphasis during that period had been on reinforcing fundamental safeguarding practice, embedding the principles of ‘Making Safeguarding Personal’, and strengthening multi?agency partnerships, which was described as a long?standing strength in Rotherham.

The RSAB Independent Chair then highlighted the work delivered during 2024-2025. This included a joint multi?agency self?assessment with Children’s Services, which facilitated candid discussion about cross?sector safeguarding practice and helped shape priorities for the new Strategic Plan. Considerable progress had been made in refreshing the RSAB website to improve accessibility for both professionals and the public, although further development work remained ongoing. A quarterly newsletter had also been launched and widely disseminated across the partnership and community to maintain and improve safeguarding awareness.

The RSAB Independent Chair outlined the programme for Safeguarding Awareness Week in November 2024, during which partners delivered workshops and activities on themes such as homelessness, rough sleeping, cuckooing, suicide prevention, professional curiosity, and domestic abuse affecting older people. They noted that domestic abuse among older adults was often overlooked, and the Board had sought to raise its profile during that year’s events.

In respect of safeguarding performance data, The RSAB Independent Chair explained that a 22 per cent rise in safeguarding contacts over two years reflected national trends and likely indicated increased awareness rather than increased risk. Despite the rise in demand, they confirmed that enquiries continued to be handled promptly. They also described the Board’s intention to strengthen its engagement with people who had lived experience of safeguarding by creating a new voice subgroup and recruiting an expert with experience to sit on the Board itself.

The Commission heard that work had progressed on creating a ‘Shared Learning Hub’ for adults’ and children’s services, allowing learning from safeguarding adults reviews, children’s case reviews, and domestic homicide reviews to be shared more consistently across partners.

Another key development during 2024-2025 was the introduction of the Vulnerable Adults Pathway, which was designed to support adults who did not neatly fit statutory safeguarding categories but faced heightened risks due to issues such as mental health needs, substance misuse, homelessness, or other vulnerabilities. This pathway brought together the Local Authority,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 47.

This item is to consider the Scrutiny Review Report  on Access to Contraception.

The report is a result of the review completed by the working group comprised of Members of the Health Select Commission through evidence gathering conducted between March and October 2025 and details the proposed recommendations subsequently agreed.

The Chair introduced the Access to Contraception Review Report for consideration by the Commission. Members were reminded that the report represented the outcome of a review undertaken by several current and previous Health Select Commission Members .

The Chair explained that as such, they did not intend to provide an extensive introduction invited any members who had participated in the review, along with the Governance Advisor who had support the review, to offer comments.

The Governance Advisor explained that the report had been produced collaboratively by Health Select Commission Members  who formed the Working Group.  They noted that Members, Officers and partners had been  highly engaged and dedicated a significant amount of time and effort to the review and recommendations. They also clarified the process for progressing the report through the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board (OSMB) and subsequently Cabinet, and summarised what the Commission was asked to consider in the report’s findings. They summarised that the recommendations and long-term broad ambitions set out in the report were designed to influence future service improvements and strategic direction regarding access to contraception within the Borough.

Councillor Duncan commented that the review had been a particularly interesting piece of work to participate in and formally recorded her thanks to Kerry Grinsill?Clinton, the Governance Advisor supporting the Health Select Commission, for the considerable effort they had invested in coordinating Members and supporting their work. They emphasised that producing a review report of such detail and quality must have been extremely challenging, but that the resulting report, both in content and presentation, was of an extremely high standard.

The Chair Concurred with Councillor Duncan’s sentiments.

Councillor Havard advised that they echoed that praise, and recalled that they had tabled the item for consideration some years prior so was pleased to see the report realised. Councillor Havard explained that they had learned a great deal during the review about the realities of contraception provision in Rotherham, ranging from services delivered through MESMAC to those available in local communities, and encouraged officers and partners to continue the important work.

Councillor Yasseen noted that although they had not been part of the review, she had closely examined the report and wished to endorse previous comments regarding its value. They reflected that issues such as contraception were often taken for granted, with an assumption that provision was readily accessible to all who needed it. However, the review had revealed significant postcode?based inequalities, particularly in the North and Central parts of the borough, where not all three main contraceptive options were consistently available. They also noted that the reports findings highlighted a crucial misconception, that residents often assumed that information provided by the Council or the NHS would be up?to?date, accurate and reliable whereas the review identified instances where incorrect or outdated information was shared or published, and suggested that more robust checks and balances were necessary. They felt the recommendations could have reflected this more strenuously.

Councillor Yasseen referred to the annual school lifestyle  ...  view the full minutes text for item 48.

To consider the Health Select Commission’s work programme for 2025-2026.

The Chair advised Members that the CQC Inspection Feedback item that had been  due to be presented at this meeting had been deferred to the 26 March agenda at the time the work programme included in the agenda pack was generated.  However, it subsequently became necessary to defer this item to the 14 May 2026 Health Select Commission meeting, due to unforeseen circumstances outside of the Council’s control.

The Chair added that whilst every effort would be made to bring this item to the May Health Select Commission meeting, there remained the possibility that this may be further delayed and unable to be presented until the 2026/27 municipal year, but highlighted that all possible action was being taken in order to avoid that position.

Resolved:-

That the Health Select Commission:

1.    Approved the work programme.

2.    Agreed that the Governance Advisor was authorised to make any required changes to the work programme in consultation with the Chair/Vice Chair and report any such changes back to the next meeting.

The most recent South Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee (JHOSC) meeting took place on 7 January 2026 and consider an update on performance from Yorkshire Ambulance Service. The minutes of this meeting have not yet been published.  They will be circulated to Health Select Commission Members and available via the Council’s website following publication.

The Chair advised Members that the next JHOSC meeting was due to take place on 11 March 2026, and that the minutes of the previous meeting held on 7 January 2026 would be shared with members once available.

The Chair requested that Members reviewed the agenda for the 11 March 2026 meeting once published, and contacted the Chair and Governance Advisor regarding any questions or comments to be raised on their behalf during that meeting.

To receive and consider the Director of Public Health’s Annual Report in respect of how this can inform the future work of the Health Select Commission.

The Chair requested that Health Select Commission Members who had comments, queries or questions they would like to discuss further in relation to the Director of Public Health Annual Report, or any suggestion for topics to be included in the work programme arising out of the contents of the report channel these via the Chair and Governance Advisor.

To consider any item(s) which the Chair is of the opinion should be considered as a matter of urgency.

There was no urgent business to discuss.