Agenda and minutes

There were no Declarations of Interest made at the meeting.

There were no questions from the member of the press present at the meeting.

The Chair reported:-

-        The Board had been scheduled to receive a presentation from Kooth.  However, representatives from the organisation were reluctant to attend face-to-face meetings at present

-        Due to the ill health of the key officer at the moment, the update on action being taken regarding physical activity in Rotherham would be submitted in 6 months’ time

-        Since the presentation at the previous meeting (Minute No. 32 refers), discussions had taken place with the Yorkshire Sports Foundation with regard to a joint post.  Discussions had also taken place with the Regeneration and Environment Directorate around physical activities

The minutes of the previous meeting of the Health and Wellbeing Board were considered.

Resolved:-  That the minutes of the previous meeting held on 24^th November, 2021, be approved as a true record.

Verbal update by Chris Edwards, Chief Operating Officer, RCCG

Ben Anderson, Director of Public Health, gave the following verbal update:-

-        Rotherham’s overall Covid rate had reduced to 933.6 and most importantly 381 in the over 60’s age bracket.  The rate had reduced fairly rapidly but was still at a very high level

-        The message was still that Omicron was not over yet and would go on for sometime

-        The number of patients in the Trust was high 80/low 90s with the number expected to fall.  The pressures were being managed well across the system

-        The key priority for the NHS was elective recovery i.e. those people waiting for surgery and tackling waiting times

Resolved:-  That the update be noted.

Jackie Scantlebury, Safeguarding Adult Board Manager, to present the Adults Safeguarding Board Annual Report

Jackie Scantlebury, Safeguarding Adult Board Manager, presented the Rotherham Safeguarding Adults Board 2020/21 Annual Report.

The report set out the Board’s priorities:- 

Board Priorities

-        Prevention and Early Intervention

-        Making Safeguarding Personal

-        Quality Assurance

-        Service User Engagement

Achievements 2020/21

-        Despite the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Board and its sub-groups had continued to meet regularly via Microsoft Teams

-        The Safeguarding Awareness Week (November 2020) had taken place via a virtual platform with many more people able to access training and workshop sessions than would have been the case in person

-        The opportunities the new way of working had provided would be built upon as well as recognising the importance of face-to-face contact in vital aspects of Safeguarding work

-        Self-Neglect and Hoarding Policy and Procedure launched.  Continuing offer of training sessions to embed the Policy and to ensure that everyone was comfortable using and following the procedure

-        People in Positions of Trust (PiPoT) Policy launched in November, 2020, the statutory guidance to the Care Act 2014 requiring Safeguarding Adults Boards to establish and agree a framework and process to respond to allegations against anyone who works (either paid or unpaid) with adults with care and support needs. Awareness sessions were held during Awareness Week and further sessions will continue throughout the year

2021/22

-        The Board, Executive Group and its 4 Sub-Groups would continue to meet on a quarterly basis either by virtual platform or face-to-face meetings

-        A full training package to be delivered as online learning and consideration given to the possibility of face-to-face training in 2022

-        Continued work to promote the Self-Neglect and Hoarding Policy and Procedure to ensure awareness

-        All learning from Safeguarding Adult Reviews would be shared across the partnership and different ways explored of ensuring the recommendations made were embedded in practice

-        Development day planned for April to prepare for the next 3 years strategic plan

Discussion ensued with the following issues raised/clarified:-

·        Discussions would take place at the development day in April as to how partners felt about bringing everyone back together for face-to-face meetings/training

·        Some training companies preferred to continue online training

·        Consideration was being given, together with the other Safeguarding Boards across South Yorkshire, with regard to holding a Safeguarding Day in June to discuss safe transitions to in-person meetings

·        The digital aspect of learning was important and should not be lost in the move back to in-person training/meetings

·        As the CCG ceased operating and the emergence of the Integrated Care Board for South Yorkshire it was important to ensure there was a safe transition of the accountability changes

·        Importance of the embedding of the Self-Neglect and Hoarding Policy and Procedure across all community organisations to enable those on the grounds to feel confident to make referrals

Resolved:-   That the Local Safeguarding Children Board and the Rotherham Local Safeguarding Adults Board’s Annual Report 2020-21 be noted.

Presentation by Sarah Watts, Manager, Strategic Housing

Jane Davies, Head of Strategic Housing and Development, and Garry Newton, Housing Development Intelligence Co-ordinator, gave the following powerpoint presentation on the Housing Strategy Refresh:-

Objectives

-        How the Housing Strategy will help meet the aims of the Health and Wellbeing Strategy

-        Next steps in the consultation process

All children get the best start in life and go on to achieve their potential

Affordable housing to meet local needs

-        Larger family homes

-        Looked After Children Sufficiency Strategy

-        House Project

Making sure Rotherham’s communities benefit from housing development

-        Create jobs/apprenticeships

All Rotherham people enjoy the best possible mental health and wellbeing and have a good quality of life

High quality energy efficient housing

-        Design and space

-        Improved health

-        Green Housing Strategy

All Rotherham people live well for longer

Supporting people to live independently

-        Acquiring and building bungalows

-        Shared ownership for Over 55s

-        Market Position Statement

All Rotherham people live in healthy, safe and resilient communities

Bring empty homes back into use

-        Address homelessness need

Invest in existing homes

-        Working with Public Health on:-

Fuel poverty Action plan

JSNA

Timetable

-        Early February – first draft available for comment

-        March – finalise Strategy

-        May – Cabinet for approval

Discussion ensued with the following issues raised/clarified:-

·        Importance of keeping Health engaged to assist with future planning of GP/dental surgeries etc.

·        Welcome the work being carried out to support the Sufficiency Strategy for children in care and the House Project recognising the Council’s role as  good corporate parents

·        Could Fuel Poverty be broadened out to include water poverty in the future?

·        The Strategy was largely around the provision of housing, understanding the needs of housing, how the Council met them, how it worked in partnership and the ways of working.  However, Making Every Contact Count could be clearly referenced therein

Resolved:-  (1)  That the presentation be noted.

(2)  That a copy of the Strategy be sent to Leonie Wieser, when ready for publication, for circulation to Board members.

Action:-  Jane Davies/Leonie Wieser

Jo Hinchcliffe, Service Improvement and Governance Manager, to present

Jo Hinchliffe, Service Improvement and Governance Manager, gave the following powerpoint presentation:-

The Borough That Cares

Strategic Framework 2022-25

Creating a Carer friendly Rotherham

Background – Creating a carer friendly Rotherham

-        More than 30,000 were providing unpaid care in Rotherham often alongside work or education, for someone who otherwise could not manage without help due to illness, disability, addiction or mental health

-        This care was often invisible

-        The Covid-19 crisis had emphasised the fundamental importance of taking action to improve  the way unpaid carers were identified, recognised and supported

-        Carers had been disproportionately affected during the pandemic, both socially and economically; creating a Borough that cared for its carers was more important than ever

Our carers – working as a network

-        Being a carer often meant a person was providing support out of love or friendship for the individual they were caring for

-        Caring roles varied and anyone could become a carer at any time

-        It was important to recognise when a typical relationship developed the added dimension of one person taking a caring role for another

-        Carers could be adults caring for other adults, parents caring for children who were ill/had a disability or young carers caring for a parent, sibling, relative or friend

-        Carer organisations came together in May 2020 to ensure a joined-up response to the pandemic.  The Unpaid Carers Group formed to support the emergency response work and this ensured the carer partnership was as strong as it could be in the most extreme of circumstances

-        This had continued through 2021 and shaped the strategic framework for 2022-25

-        Borough that Carers Strategic Group now in place consisting of representatives from Health, Social Care, the voluntary sector and those with lived experience

How we created the framework

-        Focus group sessions with partners suggested that a new strategic approach “kept it all simple” but allowed work programmes to evolve and grow

Recovery and Reflection

-        Over the last 2 years a lot of time and energy taken up by adapting to the constraints and restrictions of the pandemic

-        Services and organisations had flexed and worked in diverse and different ways

-        Some ways of working had stopped, some elements of services were paused and workplaces no longer looked and felt like they did pre-pandemic

-        Important to take time to consider how all of the changes had impacted on front-facing services for carers

-        Recovery Plan adapted from the ADASS regional carers group.  It had 6 quality marker themes and each had a range of statements:-

Awareness and culture

Identification and recognition

Information and advice

Better conversations

Support and services

Carers as expert care partners

-        It provided an opportunity for all partners to

Reflect on current practice

Identify areas where improvements could be made

Demonstrate progress and achievement

Strategic Framework 2022-25

-        Regular conversations, workshops, meetings and task groups since May, 2020, focussed on creating a new carer strategic framework

-        Key statement –  ...  view the full minutes text for item 47.

Ben Anderson, Director of Public Health, provided an update of activity taking place around the Health and Wellbeing Board action plan.

Resolved: - (1)  That the update be noted.

(2)  That the 4 Aims sub-groups give consideration to any changes required to the action plan.

(3)  That at the next meeting of the Executive Board consideration be given as to how to take forward the Strategy beyond March 2023.

(4)  That an update be submitted to the September meeting of the Board.

ACTION:  Leonie Wieser

Councillor Roche, Chair, to report

The Board noted that the Rotherham Clinical Commissioning Group (RCCG) and Rotherham Metropolitan Council (RMBC) had jointly developed a new overarching Section 75 Framework Agreement and BCF Call-Off Partnership/Work Order in 2021/22, which reflected local need and priorities.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) had published a Policy Framework for the implementation of the Better Care Fund (BCF) in 2021/22.

The Framework formed part of the NHS mandate for 2021/22. As set out in the BCF Policy Framework, the requirements of the planning process had focussed on continuity in 2021/22, while enabling areas to agree plans for integrated care that supported recovery from the pandemic and built on the closer working relationships that many systems had developed to respond to this.

Resolved:-

That the Better Care Fund Call-Off Partnership/Work Order for 2021/22, incorporated into the Section 75 Agreement, be noted.

Verbal update by Sharon Kemp, Chief Executive, RMBC

Sharon Kemp, Chief Executive RMBC, gave the following verbal update:-

-        Following the Prime Minister’s announcement, the country had moved from Plan B to Plan A which had seen the new requirements coming into force as from 19^th January, 2022

-        A lot of work on communications had taken place as to what the changes meant and also to refer to national guidance; whilst not mandatory or legislation, but guidance encouraging members of the public to wear masks in crowded and indoor spaces where they might come into contact with people they would not normally do so

-        The Director of Public Health has been very clear on the guidance coming from Chief Medical Officer around good practice

-        Over Christmas there had been some challenges around the availability of LFT tests but the partnership had worked together and kit moved to where it had been needed i.e. Social Care/medical

-        Rotherham was performing really well around the roll out of vaccines and in line with national good practice.  The CCG had worked hard to ensure the booster programme had taken place.  Work was now focussed on pop-ups, looking at intelligence of any areas where something was needed to be provided over and above the standard offer that had been going across the Borough

-        The Outbreak Control Plan would continue to be reviewed in light of Government guidance.  A view would be taken on the future once further national guidance had been received as to what the next steps were on the National Outbreak Plan and what the emphasis was going forward

It was also noted that the 16-17 years old age group booster was part of the vaccination programme.  5-12 years old classed as clinical vulnerable were being offered the vaccine through Primary Care as well as those who lived in the same household as someone classed as clinical vulnerable.

Resolved:-  That the update be noted.

Wednesday, 16^th March, 2022, venue to be confirmed.

Resolved:-  That a further meeting be held on Wednesday, 16^th March, 2022, in Rotherham Town Hall.