Agenda item

Rebecca Woolley, Policy and Partnerships, and Gilly Brenner, Public Health, to present

Gilly Brenner, Consultant in Public Health, and Rebecca Woolley, Policy and Partnerships, reported that the current Rotherham Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) was due to be refreshed.  This provided an opportunity to consider rationalising the content, a better fit to drive current priorities and ensuring it was more meaningful to commissioners, Service providers and partners.

The launch of the Thriving Neighbourhoods Strategy set out a new asset-based way of working placing communities at the heart of everything that was done.  To work in a truly asset focused way required a change in emphasis from ‘troublesome’ indicators to include a better balance of ‘heartening’ indicators (assets, strengths, social capital, protective factors). 

Previously the JSNA had been primarily owned and maintained by the Council.  If it was to be meaningful and used by a wider audience, it was important that partners were actively involved in contributing data and contextual analysis.  It should provide a rich resource of information to support the voluntary sector in evidencing information about their local community for funding bids etc.

The JSNA and data and intelligence provision, such as producing health needs assessments, needed to be a joined up and sustainable approach.  Having information available online enabled users to access easily and kept resources in a common location.

The consultation was crucial in determining the most appropriate design to meet the needs of users.  Components of the design to be decided included the structure of sections, content display and thematic content.  It was proposed that key interested representatives from organisations be identified/confirmed through the consultation who would then form part of a working authors group who contributed to the JSNA on an ongoing basis.

In order to provide the required level of data and accompanying contextual information with current capacity, it was proposed that:-

-         the JSNA comprise of strategic overview of key areas at a Rotherham level and as Ward profiles

-         depth for certain priority topics was added according to priority

-         the JSNA author group support the provision of more indepth data where a priority was agreed

-         determination of prioritisation where there was a defined current use and demand for information and where there was a sponsor who could lead a topic-specific working group to support collation of the required information

An interactive presentation was given allowing Select Commission Members to express their views on the proposal which included why the JSNA should be refreshed, followed by six questions asking the Select Commission to vote and give a steer on their preference.  This information would be collated and included as part of the consultation.  The consultation would remain open for a few more days if anyone wished to submit any comments.

In response to a query about whether or not the refresh would incorporate the new boundary changes, it was confirmed that this would be taken account of in due course.

The outcome of the consultation would be summarised and pulled together for consideration by a Stakeholder Steering Group in mid-February where again key partners would look at the content with officers in more detail.

This would shape the process for how the JSNA would work in April and then going forward would see the development of the new websites, the voluntary sector events and some more clarification around the deep dive and the needs assessment process.

Resolved:-  (1)  That the proposal of a refresh of the JSNA be approved.

(2)  That an update on progress on the JSNA refresh and updated website be provided to the Health Selection Commission during the summer.