Agenda and minutes

The Board is asked to note that in accordance with the Terms of Reference County Councillor A Ali, as the Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, is appointed as the Chair for the remainder of the 2014/15 municipal year.

Resolved: That in accordance with the Terms of Reference County Councillor Ali, as the Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, is appointed as the Chair for the remainder of the 2014/15 municipal year.

The current Deputy Chair, as nominated by the Clinical Commissioning Groups and approved by the Board in October, 2013, is Dr A Bowman.

Resolved: That Dr A Bowman is appointed as the Deputy Chair of the Board for the remainder of the 2014/15 municipal year.

A report was presented in connection with the membership and Terms of Reference of the Board.

In considering the report the Board noted that after the agenda had been circulated the Lancashire Leaders Group had appointed Councillor T Harrison as the representative of East Lancashire authorities in place of Councillor J Cooper. It was also noted that Mr D Tomlinson was no longer the reserve representative for the Lancashire Care Foundation Trust.

Resolved: That the amended membership of the Health and Wellbeing Board, as set out below, is noted and a copy of the current Terms of Reference set out in Minute Book.

At the meeting apologies for absence were presented on behalf of County Councillor T Martin, County Councillor M Tomlinson, Mr S Gross, Ms L Taylor, Mr R Jones and Councillor M Khan (observer from Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council). Apologies were also subsequently received from Dr D Wrigley.

Members of the Board are asked to consider any Pecuniary and Non-Pecuniary Interests they may have to disclose to the meeting in relation to matters under consideration on the Agenda.

There were no disclosures of interest in relation to items appearing on the agenda.

The Chair informed the meeting that Councillor Little had attended a training programme in relation to health improvement as part of the Championing Health and Wellbeing in Your Community Programme and had achieved a Level 2 Award in Understanding Health Improvement.  The Chair congratulated Councillor Little on behalf of the Board and presented her with a certificate.

Resolved: That the Minutes of the meeting held on the 29^th April 2014 are confirmed as an accurate record and signed by the Chair.

The Board received an update from the Joint Officer Group (JOG) on the Health and Wellbeing Strategy. Key actions for the three programmes of work within the Strategy (Starting Well, Living Well and Ageing Well) were presented for discussion.

Starting Well

It was reported that though the Lancashire Safeguarding Children Board and Lancashire Children and Young Peoples Trust significant progress had been made in relation to delivering improved outcomes for children and young people. It was noted that the framework and priorities for this delivery were contained within the Children and Young Peoples Plan which had recently been refreshed and agreed by all sectors working with children and young people.

In view of the above it was agreed that the Board should endorse the Children and Young Peoples Plan and adopt it as the Starting Well element of the Health and Wellbeing Strategy. It was also agreed that the Board would support activity to strengthen links and alignment between locality Health and Wellbeing Partnerships and the children and young people partnerships as they develop.

Living Well

It was reported that factors such as income, employment and the living/work environment all contributed to people's health and wellbeing and that addressing inequalities in these areas would minimise health inequalities in a sustainable way.

A range of organisations, including District Councils, registered social landlords and social care services work together to provide affordable, suitable, safe and secure housing. A programme of work is being developed to engage more effectively with registered social landlords since they often own housing stock in more deprived areas, providing an opportunity to contribute resources, assets, access and intelligence for the benefit of tenants, the wider local community and other partners. It was also suggested that housing authorities consider the use of selective licensing schemes as another way of improving housing standards, particularly in the private rented sector.

Ageing Well

It was reported that as the proportion of the Lancashire population aged 65 and older continued to increase the challenge for health and social care services was to support people to enjoy healthy and fulfilling lives. When discussing the proposed breakthrough actions it was recognised that some of the proposals were more aspirational than others and it was agreed that any aspirations should also be achievable.

The Six Shifts

It was reported that as part of the development of the Strategy a Joint Strategic Needs Assessment approach would be adopted in relation to each of the identified six shifts. The Board was informed that Mr Jones from NHS England had agreed to be the project sponsor and Lead Officers had now been identified for five out of the six shifts. With regard to the remaining Lead Officer position it was suggested that the CCGs be asked to nominate a representative for the role.

It was noted that a consultation and shaping event which would be hosted by the Board was planned for the September and further details regarding arrangements would be circulated in due course.

Equality Analysis

It was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

Mrs Stanley, Chair of Healthwatch Lancashire, presented the Annual Report for 2013/14 and informed the meeting of a number of developments which would be taken forward during the coming year, including:

·  The appointment of a new Chief Executive and an increase in the membership of the Healthwatch Lancashire Board from 9 to 11 members.

·  Improved marketing of Healthwatch Lancashire through investment in IT and the creation of a web based presence which would enable the organisation to reach a more significant percentage of the population. A series of community meetings were also planned as a way of contacting those people who may not have access to IT.

·  It was planned to recruit and train at least 100 volunteers by the end of 2014/15

·  The establishment of three project groups based around Old Age, Mental Health, Physical Disability which would engage with partner organisations such as the CCGs and Acute Trusts.

With regard to the proposed approach to marketing it was suggested that action should also be taken to publicise the organisation through the local press and Mrs Stanley confirmed that whilst links with the press had been established further work was needed in relation to generating interest in potential news items.

On behalf of the Board the Chair thanked Mrs Stanley for the report and congratulated all those who had been involved in establishing Healthwatch Lancashire during its first year of operation.

Resolved: That the Healthwatch Lancashire Annual Report for 2013/14 is noted.

Oral report.

The Deputy Chair informed the meeting that there was general agreement that the Health and Wellbeing Board needed to empower and provide clear directions to local Health and Wellbeing Partnerships in relation to the implementation of aspects of the Health and Wellbeing Strategy. As mentioned earlier in the meeting while the Partnerships would take a leadership role locally in accordance with the Strategy the Board would maintain its statutory responsibility and strategic overview regarding health and wellbeing outcomes across Lancashire. In the future the Board would adopt a similar approach to the one used in relation to the Better Care Fund and would look to feedback from the Health and Wellbeing Partnerships before signing the local plans.

It was recognised that in Lancashire the relationships involved in connection with the Health and Wellbeing Strategy were complex and so it was suggested that the Local Government Association be requested to conduct a peer review in order to gain knowledge/experience and identify examples of best practice from elsewhere.

Resolved:

1.  That the Local Government Association be requested to conduct a peer review in relation to the proposed course of action to implement the Lancashire Health and Wellbeing Strategy.

2.  That feedback from local Health and Wellbeing Partnerships be taken into account when finalising local plans before submission to the Board for approval. 

Oral report.

The Deputy Chair informed the meeting that the Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) had developed initial 5 year strategic plans which had been presented for consideration at an event hosted by the Board. Feedback had been provided to individual CCGs on the plans which would continue to be developed and be subject to further consultation.

In response to a query regarding CCG Governing Bodies the Deputy Chair confirmed that meetings were open to the public and the agenda/minutes were available via the Internet.

Resolved:

1.  That the update on the development of CCG five year strategic plans is noted.

2.  That details regarding future arrangements for meetings of individual CCG Governing Bodies are circulated to the members of the Board for information.

A report was presented regarding a proposed protocol between the Health and Wellbeing Board and the Lancashire Safeguarding Children Board which would provide a framework for the relationship between the two Boards and support the delivery of their respective strategic responsibilities.

Resolved: That implementation of the protocol with the Lancashire Safeguarding Children Board, as set out in the report presented, is approved.

The Chair presented a report in connection with the decision of the County Council to establish a Fairness Commission to provide an independent perspective on equality in Lancashire and make recommendations to increase equality to the authority and its partners.

It was noted that the Cabinet had agreed to establish a Fairness Commission as set out in the report and the Chair informed the meeting of the 21 representatives who had subsequently been appointed by partner organisations to serve on the Commission. A copy of the membership of the Commission is set out in the Minute Book. 

It was acknowledged that future recommendations from the Fairness Commission would have implications for the Board in tackling health inequalities.

Resolved: That the report is noted and the Board actively support the work of the Lancashire Fairness Commission in the future.

A detailed report was presented in connection with the Tobacco Control Strategy for Lancashire 2014/16 and one of its key priority areas – tackling smoking during pregnancy.

It was noted that one of the core aims of the Strategy was to help tobacco users quit and the Tobacco Free Lancashire partnership would continue to support the commissioning and development of specialist stop smoking services to assist adults and young people achieve this. However, it was recognised that this support was only a small element of a comprehensive programme aimed at encouraging people to be tobacco free which included government taxation, use of plain packaging and legislation prohibiting smoking in specified places.

The health implications of the growth in the use of Electronic cigarettes (E-cigarettes) was discussed and it was noted that the Strategy did include initiatives regarding the devices. It was also reported that there was currently no national consensus regarding use of E-cigarettes though the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency was to introduce regulations in 2016 regarding use of some E-cigarette products to support attempts to stop smoking.

Resolved: That the Board approve the Tobacco Control Strategy for  Lancashire 2014/16 and the associated Tackling Smoking in Pregnancy Action Plan as set out in the report presented and implement them within commissioning plans where appropriate.

Oral report.

The Chair informed the meeting that Acute Trusts in Lancashire had been asked to provide details of their savings plans for the next 12 months which would then be referred to the County Councils Health Scrutiny Committee to examine in detail. In response to a query the Chair confirmed that District Councils would be informed when the Scrutiny Committee was due to scrutinise hospitals in their area.

Resolved:

1.  That the report is noted.

2.  That a report on the findings of the Health Scrutiny Committee is presented to a future meeting of the Board.

An item of Urgent Business may only be considered under this heading where, by reason of special circumstances to be recorded in the minutes, the Chair of the meeting is of the opinion that the item should be considered at the meeting as a matter of urgency.  Wherever possible, the Chief Executive should be given advance warning of any Members' intention to raise a matter under this heading.

There were no items of urgent business for discussion at the meeting.

The next scheduled meeting of the Board will be held at 2pm on 16^th October 2014 in Cabinet Room 'C' - The Duke of Lancaster Room at County Hall, Preston.

It was noted that the next scheduled meeting of the Board would be held at 2.00pm on the 16^th October 2014 in Cabinet Room 'C'- The Duke of Lancaster Room at County Hall, Preston.