Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Chief Superintendent Steve Heatley, Ruby Sayed and Jeremy Simons.

The Chairman led the Board in welcoming Nina Griffiths who would be representing the NHS North East London Clinical Commissioning Group as a new Board Member.

There were no declarations.

To agree the minutes of the previous meeting held on 26 November 2021.

In considering Minute 6: Update on the City and Hackney Pharmaceutical Needs Assessments 2022, the Deputy Director of Public Health advised that the Chairman had recently provided representations on behalf of the Board with regard to a proposed chemist closure in the City of London.  A robust process was now in place to support timely consultation on any similar arising matters.

RESOLVED, that the public minutes and non-public summary of the meeting held on 26 November 2021 be approved.

Report of the Group Director of Adults, Health and Integration, London Borough of Hackney

The Board considered a report of the Director of Public Health presenting the proposed production process of the City and Hackney Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) and the following points were made:

·         There was a statutory requirement for local authorities and their partners to produce an annual JSNA to inform and underpin policy, commissioning, key strategies and other local plans designed to improve the health and wellbeing of their residents.  It was proposed that the City and Hackney JSNA be based around a four-stage cycle comprising Initiation, Approval; Production and Evaluation.  This cycle would further be supported by robust consultation and collaboration processes, both with local service users and stakeholders, as well as with neighbouring areas including as the London Borough of Tower Hamlets where some City residents accessed healthcare.  It was also planned to update the City and Hackney JSNA website to reflect the evolving health and wellbeing profile and priorities of the City of London and London Borough of Hackney.

·         The Chairman welcomed the proposed process to produce the City and Hackney JSNA, which reflected the key role of the Health and Wellbeing Board in approving and evaluating the JSNA, and noted that the annual timescales for producing the JSNA would need to fit with the commissioning and budgetary cycles of all stakeholders.  In response to a question from a Board Member, the Health Intelligence Lead advised that the City and Hackney JSNA website was being designed as a flexible resource to provide health and wellbeing information at a range of levels but that this would be delivered in line with data protection requirements with no individuals being identifiable.  The Chairman underlined the need for a direct link to the City and Hackney JSNA website from the City of London Corporation website to reflect the City of London’s

The Director of Community and Children’s Services to be heard.

The Board heard an update of the Director of Public Health on the Health and Wellbeing Board Strategy and the following point was made:

·         A Health and Wellbeing Board Strategy was being developed to provide a detailed picture of health inequality in the City of London.  As well as establishing the role of the Board as a place-based expert within the wider health and social care infrastructure, the strategy would help identify those in low-paid and insecure work and ensure appropriate levels of support were in place.  Work to develop the strategy would be supported by an extensive engagement programme, including peer researchers targeting specific communities, prior to the final strategy being presented to the meeting of the Health and Wellbeing Board on 25 November 2022 for approval.  In response to a question from the Chairman, the Strategy and Projects Officer advised that the strategy was primarily focused on individuals who worked in low-paid or insecure work.  The Chairman requested that the definition of health inequalities include mental health support and another Board Member underlined the corporate responsibility that companies based within the City of London had for all their employees, included sub-contracted staff who might be in low-piad or insecure positions.

RESOLVED, that the update be noted.

Report of the Town Clerk.

The Board considered a report of the Town Clerk presenting the annual review of the Terms of Reference and the following point was made:

• It was proposed that no changes be made to the Terms of Reference at the present time as the Health and Care Bill was not due to be enacted until later in 2022 and could have implications for the composition and the scope of the work of the Health and Wellbeing Board.  The Chairman noted that the Board  continued to carry a vacancy for a representative of the Safer City Partnership and requested that new representation be sought at the start of the 2022/23 municipal year.

RESOLVED, that:

·         The Terms of Reference be approved for submission to both the Policy and Resources Committee and the Court of Common Council for approval;

·         No change was required to the Board’s frequency of meetings;

·         No change was required to the Board’s current composition; and

• Authority be delegated to the Town Clerk in consultation with the Chairman and Deputy Chairman to agree any further changes to the Terms of Reference for the 2022/23 municipal year.

The Director of Public Health to be heard.

The Board heard an update of the Director of Public Health on issues and matters relating to the COVID-19 pandemic and the following point was made:

• The City of London currently had the highest infection rate per 100k of population across London.  Due to the small population, this equated to approximately 80-90 cases per week which were mostly affecting adults aged between 19-24 years.  The existing vaccination programme had been supplemented by pop-up vaccination sessions at various locations across the City which had supported a large increase in uptake of the vaccine in Portsoken ward in December 2021.  In response to a question from a Board Member, the Deputy Director of Public Health confirmed that whilst the COVID-19 infection rate remained high, the number of City residents requiring hospitalisation continued to decrease with approximately 3-5 individuals requiring mechanical ventilation per week.  The Chairman requested that more City-specific data be provided for future updates to the Board.

RESOLVED, that the update be noted.

Report of the Chair of Healthwatch City of London.

The Board considered a report of the General Manager of Healthwatch City of London providing an update on its work and the following points were made:

• Healthwatch continued to work closely with residents regarding health and wellbeing services in the City of London and had held a successful online public meeting with guest speakers from St Bartholomew’s Hospital and Homerton University Hospital Foundation Trust in December 2021.  St Bartholomew’s Hospital and NHS North East London Clinical Commissioning Group had recently announced the establishment of new consultations mechanisms comprising a Patient Experience and Engagement committee and Engagement Leads network respectively, and Healthwatch City of London would be represented on both bodies to ensure that engagement with City residents was robust and that City voices were heard. 

• In considering the update, the Chairman noted the long journeys many City residents faced in travelling to Homerton University Hospital Foundation Trust provision.  The Chairman proposed that community diagnostic hubs be established for the City’s resident and working population, as well as for health areas underrepresented in the City of London such as access to NHS dentistry.  The Director of Community and Children’s Services suggested that dentistry be incorporated in the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment.

The Chairman observed that Paul Coles, General Manager of Healthwatch City of London would be leaving his role shortly and thanked him for his excellent contribution to the Board. 

RESOLVED, that the update be noted.

Report of the Director of Public Health.

The Board considered a report of the Director of Public Health providing a progress update on Synergi Pledge Makers and the following point was made:

·         The Synergi collaborative was a five-year national initiative, funded by Lankelly Chase, to reframe, rethink and transform the realities of ethnic inequalities in being impacted by severe mental illness and multiple disadvantage.  In Spring 2021, the Health and Wellbeing Boards of the City of London and London Borough of Hackney became signatories to the Synergi pledge.  Work was now underway to deliver against the seven pledge commitments which aimed to create fundamental, inclusive and sustainable change to reduce ethnic inequalities in access, experience and outcomes, including close working with local BAME communities, service users and relevant community agencies, as well providing national leadership on this critical issue.  In response to a question from the Chairman, the Consultant in Public Health confirmed that it whilst not all the areas that made up the NHS North East London Clinical Commissioning Group had signed to the Synergi Pledge, work was ongoing to promote participation.

RESOLVED, that:

·         The report be noted;

·         Further activities underway that would feature in subsequent reports be noted; and,

·         Members’ comments on issues and areas of activity at a system-level to become a focus in the next and subsequent bi-annual reports be noted.

There were no questions.

There were three items of other business.

The Chairman notified the Board that, following a rigorous assurance process, the City’s Better Care Fund bid had been approved and that funding would be formally released in accordance with the approved plan.

The Chairman further advised that a City and Hackney Women’s Reproductive Health Survey would be launched shortly.  This was a localised version of a national survey and was designed to better understand the needs of women aged 15-55 years resident in the City and Hackney area.  Those who qualified were encouraged to complete the survey and promotional information would be shared with Board Members when available.

The Chairman thanked Board Members, Officers and partners for their commitment and excellent work in supporting the Health and Wellbeing Board during the 2021/22 municipal year.  The Chairman particularly acknowledged the excellent contribution of Jeremy Simons over many years as he would shortly be stepping down as a Common Councillor.

MOTION - That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act.

RESOLVED, that, under Section 100(a) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act.

Item no                                  Para no

13, 15, 17 & 18                     3

14                                            1, 2 & 3

16                                            3 & 7

To agree the non-public minutes of the previous meeting held on 26 November 2021.

RESOLVED, that the non-public minutes of the meeting held on 26 November 2021 be approved.

Report of the Director of Public Health.

The Board considered a report of the Director of Public Health regarding suicide prevention in the City of London, including an evaluation of the Mental Health Street Triage service.

Report of the Director of the Environment Department.

This item was withdrawn.

Joint report of the Director of the Built Environment and the Commissioner of the City of London Police.

The Board considered a joint report of the Director of the Built Environment and the Commissioner of the City of London Police on the Secure City Programme – CCTV and Telecommunications workstream.

There were no questions.

There was no other business.