Agenda and minutes

          The Minutes of the meeting held on 5 July 2023 having been circulated were signed as a correct record.

          The Chair made reference to item HWB6 on page 4 of the minutes and the recent announcement of the privatisation of Deacon Dental Practice in Widnes.  Following discussions, it was noted that the Halton ICB Corporate Team would seek alternative NHS provision for the area and report back to the Board in due course.

The Board considered a report of the Executive Director – Adult Services, which provided an overview of the updated two year Joint Working Agreement (JWA) between Halton Borough Council (HBC) and NHS Cheshire & Merseyside (CM), taking effect from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2025. The JWA replaced the previous one year JWA which was approved by both organisations in March 2023.

          It was noted that since March 2023, national guidance had been issued in respect of the Better Care Fund (BCF) Plan and discussions had also taken place between HBC and NHS CM regarding the governance arrangements in respect to the Pooled Budget. This had resulted in the establishment of a Joint Senior Leadership Team (JSLT) between HBC and NHS CM. The JSLT would be responsible for the direction, oversight and monitoring of the BCF Plan and associated Pooled Budget. The JSLT would be supported in this duty by the Better Care Commissioning Advisory Group.

          The new governance arrangements along with links to the two year BCF Plan had been reflected in the new JWA.

          The benefits of both organisations working together collaboratively and in partnership would mean that achievable and sustainable good health  and wellbeing for the people of Halton. 

          RESOLVED:  That the Board note the contents of the report.

The Board were updated on the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) which analysed the health needs of the population to inform and guide commissioning of health, well-being and social care services within local authority areas. The JSNA underpined the health and well-being strategy and commissioning plans.  The main goal of a JSNA was to assess the health needs of a local population in order to improve the physical and mental health and well-being of individuals and communities. 

          Since the first executive summary of the JSNA in 2012, the approach had continued to receive good feedback from various partnerships and stakeholders.  As a consequence, the revised annual summary had used broadly the same approach to provide updated data and information since the previous version.

          The report set out the key changes since the previous summary and the developments for the JSNA during 2023/24.  It was noted that the process for agreeing and developing a work plan for the remainder of 2023/24 and into 2024/25 would be managed in collaboration with key stakeholders and members of the Health and Wellbeing Board.   

          The Board discussed the report and the following comments were noted:

·       Councillor Lowe reported that the deprivation levels of Windmill Hill Ward had reduced as a result boundary changes and requested that the Ward issues not be lost;

·       A&E attendance for 0-4 year olds is the worst in the country – Healthwatch Halton would be interested to get involved in a piece of work to understand the reasons for this data; and

·       Concerns expressed about confusing messages for various campaigns which deterred people from coming forward, for example, the shingles vaccination campaign.  The Director of Public Health agreed to feed this back to those responsible for promoting the various campaigns.    

          RESOLVED: That the report be noted and the draft summary document be approved for publication.

          The Board received the 2022/23 Annual Report for Healthwatch Halton which described the work and achievements during the year. 

          This year, Healthwatch Halton celebrated its 10-year anniversary.  Over the last 10 years people had shared both good and bad experiences to help improve health and social care and some of those improvements included: 

·       Engagement with vulnerable adults to ensure their views were listened to;

·       Improved patient and visitor facilities at local hospitals;

·       Major improvement plan implemented by NHS Halton CCG at the Woodview Child Development Centre;

·       Improved access to GP and Out of Hours services; and

·       Redesign of Musculoskeletal Services pathway.

          During the past 12 months 1,204 people shared their experiences of health and social care services and engaged with the information, advice and signposting service 43,701 times.  There had been 13 reports published about the experiences of people accessing services, with the most popular being access to NHS dentistry in Halton. 

          The report also outlined the priorities for the coming year which were:

·       Hospital Discharges – to review the discharge process and collect experiences of patients and families;

·       14+ ID Health Checks – to review the criteria for health checks and help improve access and uptake; and

·       Primary Care Engagement – to gather experiences of people using the services in Halton.

          The Board gave thanks to Healthwatch Halton and the good work they do to support residents of the Borough. 

          RESOLVED:  That the Board receive the report. 

The Board received a report from the Executive Director – Adults Services, which provided an update on the Better Care Fund (BCF) Plan 2023-25 following its submission on 28 June 2023.  The update provided the Board with information on the four national conditions and the three related documents, those being the BCF Plan, BCF planning template and capacity and demand information.

          RESOLVED:  The BCF Plan 2023/25 be noted for information.

          The Board received a presentation from the Director of Customer Experience at Halton Housing Trust (HHT). 

          Over 32% of Halton’s population are aged over 55 with a number of people over 65 rising faster than any other population group.  Just under 30% of HHT homes had at least one person living there aged 65 or over.  There was 93% of customers aged 65 or over who lived in general needs housing and 7% lived with support in place. 

          The presentation provided an overview of how HHT supported older people with housing and broader health needs which included:

·       Aids and adaptations;

·       Housing with support schemes;

·       Safeguarding;

·       Partnership working;

·       Social/Community events;

·       Welfare Benefit and Money Advice; and

·       Cost of Living Support.

It was noted that HHT worked closely with Adult Social Care on many initiatives including Falls Prevention.

RESOLVED:  That the report be noted. 

The Board considered a report which provided a summary of the flu and Covid-19 winter vaccination programme. 

          The UK Health Security Agency had identified a new Covid-19 Omicron variant and as a result brought forward this years’ winter flu and Covid-19 vaccination programme from October to September.  Although the new variant was not considered a concern, the precautionary approach was adopted to ensure that eligible population groups were protected as early as possible. 

          The Board discussed the report and the following comments were noted:

·       Concerns were expressed about the communication and advice about vaccinations; the Director of Public Health to check if the Whatsapp service was still active;

·       Public were confused about some of the campaigns; this to be fed back to those responsible for promoting the campaigns. 

          RESOLVED:  That:

1)    the content and process of planning for winter to protect Halton’s population against additional threats that the season may bring be noted; and

2)    each individual agency note their respective requirements in relation to the programme and use all opportunities to promote positive prevention messages and community support as widely as possible. 

The Board received a report from the Director of Public Health which outlined the work undertaken by the Public Health Team, Health Improvement Team and partners in initiatives to provide support to Halton residents as a result of the rising cost of living.  The report also described details of planned initiatives to support residents during the Winter and those included:

·       Food poverty initiatives;

·       Affordable Warmth and Energy Efficiency initiatives;

·       Winter Outreach campaign;

·       Pension Credit;

·       Bus Travel Support;

·       Medical Equipment Energy Support;

·       NHS Pre-paid Prescription Certificate; and

·       Warm Space.

RESOLVED:  That the report be noted.

          The Board received a report from the Director of Public Health which contained an update on the Council’s health and wellbeing offer for older adults which included:

·       Preventing ill health among older people;

·       Partnership working;

·       Falls prevention; and

·       Winter wellbeing.

The One Halton Health and Wellbeing Strategy set out a number of ageing well priorities that were aimed at enabling older adults to live full, independent and healthy lives. 

          It was noted that the programme of work carried out by the Health Improvement Team (HIT) to improve the health and wellbeing of older residents would inform the strategic development of One Halton workstreams moving forwards. 

Halton Housing Trust agreed to get involved with some of the initiatives on offer for older adults.

RESOLVED:  That the report be noted.

The Board considered the final version of the Terms of Reference following feedback received from the draft document presented at the July Board meeting. 

          Subject to a change of a job description listed in the Membership, the Board confirmed that they were happy to accept the revised Terms of Reference. 

          RESOLVED:  That the Board accept the refreshed Terms of Reference.