Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Deputy Christopher Boden, and from Alpa Raja.

Deborah Oliver declared that she is a member of the informal City Carers network.

To agree the minutes of previous meetings.

To approve the minutes of the meeting of 18 January 2023

RESOLVED, That the minutes of the meeting of 18 January 2023 be approved as an accurate record of the proceedings.

To receive the notes of the inquorate meeting of 9 May 2023.

The Committee received the notes of the inquorate meeting of 9 May 2023.

To approve the minutes of the meeting of 22 June 2023.

On taxicards (referenced at item 8 of those minutes), a Member commented that an update had been received and that the taxicard scheme did not appear to be working well, asking whether there was scope to improve its operation and the lack of access from black cabs to the St Paul’s area was impacting on the scheme’s operation. The meeting heard that these issues would be examined during further discussions on the operation of the scheme.

RESOLVED, That the minutes of the meeting of 22 June 2023 be approved as a correct record of the proceedings subject to the following amendment: in this sentence under item 6 “The Deputy Chairman was duly appointed as the representative, with Michael Hudson appointed to serve as a seconder”, the word ‘seconder’ to be replaced by the word ‘alternate’.  

To review the Committee’s workplan.

The Committee reviewed the workplan.

The Committee agreed that there was merit in adding palliative/hospice care to the workplan and circulating suggestions for further agenda items, in response to a Member suggestion. 

Report of the Executive Director of Community and Children’s Services.

The Committee noted the report of the Executive Director of Community & Children’s Services providing information on the wider Adult Social Transformation Programme delivery as a follow-up report the report on the same topic submitted to the last Committee meeting. 

A Member sought clarification on how well the delivery was going and how success would be measured. The meeting heard that the programme sought to introduce systemic changes to improve adult social care by late 2024, and that a self-evaluation would be submitted to the Committee.

A Member sought clarification on the term “strengths-based”. The meeting heard that it described an ethos set out in Government legislation and guidance, including the Care Act 2014, that focusses on a person’s needs and strengths rather than what is wrong. 

On this risk implication set out in section 25 of the report: ‘Financial implications are not understood, with possible missed opportunities to bid for funding and risk to already stretched budgets’, a Member asked for clarification on the likelihood of missing funding opportunities and how that could be addressed. The meeting heard that the transformation programme was expected to mitigate that and other risks.

A Member asked for further information on Member support and roles as part of the programme. The meeting heard that the self-evaluation encompassed a peer challenge exercise that found that the Member link at the City of London Corporation (CoLC) is recognised as being robust, thanks to the relatively high number of elected Members and level of resources. 

City Carers to be heard.

The Committee noted the City Carers and City Connections presentation setting out the support provided to carers (around 60 active carers of a total of 80) by those organisations.

A Member took the opportunity to thank Cllr Anne Corbett and executive director, Community & Children’s Services Judith Finlay for their support.

A Member asked for clarification on carer-specific training, referrals, and welfare calls. The meeting heard that carer-specific training (online or in-person) will be delivered in late November 2023 on carers’ rights, that welfare calls were instigated at least weekly during lockdown, and that referrals are made through adult social care services though carers can also self-refer.

On caring for those experiencing dementia, a Member commented that constant care was required for such people and asked who paid for those services. The meeting heard that a care package would be provided where appropriate following a full assessment, with the charging policy set out in the Care Acts 2014.

The meeting noted that a carer strategy would be submitted to the CoLC Community & Children’s Services Committee in early November 2023. 

On the customer satisfaction survey figures, a Member asked what improvements needed to be made for those who were not satisfied (noting that the findings suggested that the service was good). The meeting heard that forum sessions had been held with carers where suggestions could be made for improvements, and that a more tailored approach might be worthwhile for the very small number of people who were not satisfied. 

A Member asked whether schools were informed and updated of young carer responsibilities. The meeting heard that all young carers were known to adult social care services who liaised with schools and with multi-agency young carer support services. 

Report of the Director of Public Health (City and Hackney).

The Committee reviewed the report of the Director of Public Health (City and Hackney) providing the Committee with an update on actions taken to reduce health inequalities for people working in routine, manual and service occupation, noting that the actions and updates were reviewed by the CoLC’s Health and Wellbeing Board at the meeting of 22 September 2023 (item 6: “Members agree to adopt the resolutions by the relevant committees of the City of London Corporation, and refer the resolutions to the Corporate Services Committee”), also discussed at the meeting of 24 March 2023,  to be submitted to the CoLC’s Policy & Resources Committee.

The Committee noted the following:

- the potentially detrimental impact that low-paid shift work can have on the health and wellbeing of staff including those from the hidden and essential workforce;

- that there is merit in supporting studies that seek to identify potential actions that can address health inequalities in the essential and hidden workforce; and

- the recommendations set out in the report relating to sick pay and death in service eligibility (without a qualifying period) for workers, noting also the merits of undertaking further work to assess the likely costs, benefits and HR implications of implementation of such measures.

A Member asked whether the CoLC followed best practice in respect of hidden carers among those that worked at the CoLC, and asked whether services should be provided outside normal hours for CoLC shift workers who might be hidden carers (particularly those with late finishing times and those with long travel times). The meeting heard that the corporate senior leadership team was supportive of the principles, and that a financial impact assessment had been requested in support of any recommendations and decisions on the matter.

A Member commented that concerns about health and wellbeing of

Officers from City and Hackney Public Health to be heard.

The Committee noted the verbal update of the public health consultant working with City & Hackney Young People’s Service (CHYPS) providing a range of health and wellbeing services, noting that the CHYPS contract (total value of £540K) has not been extended beyond 30 November 2023 due to poor performance. The Committee noted that there appeared to be no signs of recovery after the pandemic, and was not reaching its target audience of under-18s in the City of London. The Committee heard that no replacement has been commissioned due to the availability of alternative local provision including sexual health services, and consideration of other strategies. The Committee noted that there were no CoLC savings associated with the decision to end the service.

A Member asked how a young person in the City of London might know which service to access. The meeting heard that the commissioning and delivery landscape is complex, and a key focus in the review is ways to improve the navigation and signposting of such services. 

A Member noted that there were no state secondary schools in the City of London, noting that those seeking sexual health services did not necessarily have to go to a local provider and were freely available nationally. The meeting noted that work to engage secondary schools in sexual and relationship education is ongoing.

A Member asked whether there was unmet need. The meeting noted that young people in the City of London had not been accessing services, though it was not clear whether those people were accessing other services in other areas. The meeting heard that there did appear to be some unmet needs around sexual health services in particular, and that it was critical that young people have reliable knowledge of how and where to access such services (which was not being

There were no questions.

A Member commented on issues expressed on mould in housing in the City of London area that affected people’s health, and asked whether there was scope for questioning CoLC officers on the matter. The meeting noted that the issue has been discussed at other CoLC committees and that updates and reports have been submitted to those committees. The meeting noted that a briefing could be submitted to the Committee.