Agenda and minutes

          The Minutes of the meeting held on 23 September 2025 were taken as read and signed as a correct record.

The following question was received:

This question relates to agenda item 5B HSAB annual report 2024/25

An Explanation and a reason why Halton Borough are in breach of the Care Act from 2022 to present date, although Halton Borough have employed a New Independent Chair in October 2024 and an Independent Scrutiny Director of Safeguarding in January 2025.  Halton Borough for the 4 years regarding safeguarding annual reports have breached the Care Act as follows: 

An explanation why 2 New Employers employed in October 2024 and January 2025 under new structure and hopefully different culture are still breaching care act? 

Supplementary question as follows :

The Safeguarding adults annual report is on the agenda for Tuesday 25th November meeting, to be approved. The safeguarding adults annual report has already been released in to the public domain? 

https://councillors.halton.gov.uk/documents/s81175/
App%201%20HSAB%20Annual%20Report%202024-25.pdf

The Care Act 2014 requires each SAB to publish an annual report. Most SABs already produce annual reports, although their content and format vary. The Care Act (Schedule 2.4 (1) a – g) defines the minimum content of an annual report thus:

As soon as is feasible after the end of each financial year, a SAB must publish a report on:

what it has done during that year to achieve its objective,

what it has done during that year to implement its strategy,

what each member has done during that year to implement the strategy,

the findings of the reviews arranged by it under section 44 (safeguarding adults reviews) which have concluded in that year (whether or not they began in that year),

the reviews arranged by it under that section which are ongoing at the end of that year (whether or not they began in that year),

what it has done during that year to implement the findings of reviews arranged by it under that section, and

where it decides during that year not to implement a finding of a review arranged by it under that section, the reasons for its decision.

Safeguarding Adults Boards – Annual reports - SCIE

 (https://www.scie.org.uk/safeguarding/adults/
safeguarding-adults-boards-checklist-and-resources/
annual-reports/)

The group has considered a number of SAR referrals received and feedback provided to Halton Safeguarding Adults Board in terms of outcomes and recommendations.

Care Act 2014 - Explanatory Notes (https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2014/23/notes/
division/5/1/10/3/4)

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289.Sub-paragraph (1) requires the report to describe what the SAB has done during the year to achieve its main objective and its strategy, and how each member of the SAB has helped to implement the strategy. The findings of Safeguarding Adults Reviews concluded that year (whether or not they were started in that year) and actions taken that year in response to Safeguarding Adult Reviews must also be recorded in the annual report. That is either action taken to implement findings or, where a decision has been taken not  ...  view the full minutes text for item 22.

The minutes from the Health and Wellbeing Board meeting held on 9 July 2025, were submitted to the Board for information.

          The Board received a report from the Halton Place Director, which provided an update on the Urgent Care Improvement Programme and its current performance against national standards, which resulted in the continued focus of resources and efforts to drive forward improvements.

          Over the past year, both Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, had faced challenges on their emergency care performance, which had led to their classification as Tier 1 status.  To address these issues, both Trusts had received additional support from the National Emergency Care Improvement Support Team (ECIST) alongside assistance from other external agencies.

Key sentinel metrics, supplemented by a wide range of indicators, were used to monitor performance and reported daily. Although standards had been achieved, results remained inconsistent. As a result, the improvement programmes were important to improve performance and deliver positive benefits for patient outcomes. 

It was noted that the current Accident and Emergency (A&E) 4-hour performance, remained below the national standard, which indicated a continued pressure on emergency departments.  In response, Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust was progressing several key actions to improve patient flow and overall performance within A&E and these were outlined in section 3.5 of the report.  Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust operated a smaller bed base, and many of its challenges resulted from consistently high bed occupancy levels, which averaged 101% on most days. In response, Warrington had implemented a substantial improvement programme within A&E, with full details provided in section 3.7 of the report.

The report explained that the wider system work programme was taking  forward actions to help hospital trusts. These focussed on reducing unnecessary A&E visits and making sure patients could leave hospital promptly once they were medically ready.

Following discussions and questions raised by Members of the Board, some additional information was noted:

·       Some Board Members shared personal encounters of A&E and suggested that the statistics provided in the report did not truly reflect lived experiences.  They also suggested that clearer communication was needed to help prevent unnecessary attendances at A&E and encourage use of alternative services such as Urgent Treatment Centres (UTC);

·       Board Members were reassured that, through Healthwatch, hospitals were actively seeking patient feedback across a range of services. They were also assured that Halton had performed well in reducing unnecessary hospital attendances and supporting people to remain well in the community, whilst recognising that further progress was still required to meet national standards.  It was further noted that, with Healthwatch’s support, Warrington Hospital had introduced live A&E waiting times on its website, along with waiting times for the UTC in Runcorn. This enabled patients to make informed choices about the most appropriate service to access. However, similar information was not yet available for Whiston Hospital;

·       The “Blackburn Come Back Model” was introduced in October 2025, which aimed to reduce the number of patients waiting all night in A&E by offering them  ...  view the full minutes text for item 24.

The Board received the Halton Safeguarding Adults Board’s (HSAB) Annual Report for 2024-25.

Under the Care Act 2014, Safeguarding Adults Boards (SAB) were responsible for producing an annual report setting out their achievements and highlighting priorities for the following year. 

The report had been developed in conjunction with HSAB partners to ensure the report encompassed a multi-agency approach.  Members were advised of the four strategic priorities for 2024-25: communication and involvement; strategic intervention and early intervention; making safeguarding personal; and learning development and assurance.  The report also included performance data and comparisons between years, achievements in the year updates on partner agencies and sub-groups of the HSAB and highlighted areas of good practice regarding safeguarding in the Borough. 

          The Board thanked the HSAB for the report and were pleased to note its achievements.  They were also complimentary of the referral service and officers agreed to feed this back.   

The Annual Report was approved by the Board, this would now be published and shared with HSAB member organisations.

RESOLVED:  That the Board:

1)    notes the report; and

2)    approves the Annual Report for publication.

The Board received the Performance Management Reports for quarter 2 of 2025/26.

Members were advised that the report introduced, through the submission of a structured thematic performance report, the progress of key performance indicators, milestones and targets relating to Adult Social Care in quarter 2 of 2025-26.  This included a description of factors, which were affecting the service. 

It was noted that the report did not include any Public Health data, however, this would be reported in quarter 3.

The Board was requested to consider the progress and performance information; raise any questions or points for clarification; and highlight any areas of interest or concern for reporting at future meetings of the Board. 

Following discussions, it was noted that:

·       there was an anomaly with data relating to referrals/signposting for homelessness.  The Performance Team was undertaking a piece of work to look how this was recorded; and

·       a piece of work was being undertaking regarding the pressures around respite and crisis accommodation which was captured within the  transformation programme;  an update would be provided at the next Board meeting in February 2026. 

RESOLVED: That the Performance Management report for quarter 2 of 2025/26 be received.