Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Gail Beer (Healthwatch were represented by Steve Stephenson), Matthew Bell, Andrew Carter and Jeremy Simons.

The Chairman gave public thanks to Julie Mayer for her tenure clerking the Board and welcomed Leanne Murphy as the new clerk.

There were no declarations.

To agree the public minutes and summary of the meeting held on 22 November 2019.

RESOLVED - That the minutes of the meeting held on 22 November 2019 be approved.

Matters arising

Mental Health Centre

Members were provided with a progress update regarding the Mental Health Centre. It was noted that asbestos had been identified in the building causing delays, but a formal launch of the Centre was still planned for May to coincide with mental health awareness week.   

Sport and Physical Activity Strategy

Members were informed that the City Corporation’s Sport and Physical Activity Strategy for 2020-25 had been approved and funding been had secured for feasibility studies. This work would be incorporated within the Governance Review.

Report of the Town Clerk.

Members considered a report of the Town Clerk in respect of the Annual Review of the Committee’s Terms of Reference.

It was noted that the Board did not currently have a representative of the SaferCity Partnership Steering Group (now called SaferCity Partnership) and that ‘Environmental Health and Public Protection Director’ should be changed to ‘Port Health and Public Protection Director’.

A Member was also unsure in what capacity they were a representative on the Board and the Town Clerk agreed to investigate for clarity.

RESOLVED – that:–

1.    The Terms of Reference of the Board be approved for submission to the Court of Common Council in April 2020, and that any further changes required in the lead up to the Court’s annual appointment of committees be delegated to the Town Clerk, in consultation with the Chairman and Deputy Chairman; and

2.    The frequency of the meetings remains at 5 times a year.

Report of the Director of Markets & Consumer Protection.

Members received a report of the Director of Markets & Consumer Protection providing an update detailing the delivery of an action area pledge the City of London Corporation made when they signed the Local Government Declaration on Sugar Reduction and Healthier Food.

Members were informed that this was a London-wide scheme in 24 Local Authorities. To date, eight businesses had signed up in the City including to small food chains. It was noted that larger chains were subject to more scrutiny and the City were trying to enforce criteria.

The City Corporation have developed 33 ambitious criteria for the City including the Corporation’s sustainability goals, a strategy for waste reduction and Safety Thirst considerations. Businesses must achieve a minimum of 20 criteria to be part of the scheme.   

An Officer highlighted the increasing culture and reliance on fast food/takeaways, particularly with workers, which was issue in the City. It was hoped that the scheme with businesses and public health messaging would improve this concern.

A Member noted that food left at the end of the day and sold cheaply/given to charity should not be regarded as waste. Officers confirmed that this was not waste, and the food would be stored at the adequate temperature and distributed with a delivery note for consumption that day for safety.  

In response to queries regarding schemes in other boroughs to donate food to school breakfast clubs, recycling and the lack of compostable waste bins in the City, Officers agreed to follow up with relevant individuals and departments on these matters.

The Chairman suggested adding the health and cleanliness ratings of businesses to the City Corporation’s website and for businesses to have a sticker on the door to identify them to members of the public. It was also recommended that this be featured in the Healthy

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

Members considered a report of the Director of Community and Children’s Services regarding the draft Corporate Sponsorship Guidance on Food and Drink.

Members were advised that the guidance was developed by the City Corporation’s Public Health team with input from the Chamberlain’s Department, departmental leadership teams across the organisation, and the Guild and Guildhall Club. The guidance would work towards the City Corporation’s pledges to reduce sugar.

It was noted that the guidance was endorsed by the Summit Group on 24 February 2020.

RESOLVED – That Members:-

·         Note the report;

·         Endorse the guidance.

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

Members considered a report of the Director of Community and Children’s Services providing a progress update regarding access to defibrillators in the City of London.

Members were informed that the safety team continued to work with all departments and that there were currently 43 defibrillators across all City Corporation sites. With regards to public access defibrillators, there was a need to ensure the public were aware where they were, that they were accessible and visible. Funding was being explored to fund additional defibrillators.   

In response to a query, it was noted that all defibrillators in the country were listed on two public databases: London Ambulance Service (LAS) and British Heart Foundation. Of the 91 defibrillators in the City, approximately 75% are visible and the City Corporation continues to actively encourage other to make theirs visible as visibility is known to improve survival rates.

With regards to confusion concerning paragraph 7 concerning accreditation with the LAS requiring further internal discussion, Members were advised that formal training for accreditation was required and further discussion were needed with the Health and Safety team.

A Member questioned how “fool proof” defibrillators were and how many incidents there had been of an unexpected person needing to use one in the event of an emergency. Members were advised that it was important for defibrillators to be easily accessible and easy to use which was covered in basic first aid training. Officers confirmed the approximate percentages of the use of defibrillators by healthcare/trained staff versus untrained/public responders was as follows: healthcare staff = 10%, trained responders = 50%, trained public = 30%, untrained public = 10%.

A Member noted that outcomes were good within the Square Mile but questioned accessibility to defibrillators in less developed parts of the City. An Officer confirmed that all ambulance and police

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

Members received a report of the Director of Community and Children’s Services summarising the key findings and recommendations from the ‘New Interventions and Approaches for Rough Sleepers’ report commissioned from Homeless Link in March 2019.

Members were advised that subject to approval by the Court of Common Council on 5 March 2020, funding would hopefully be secured for a permanent Assessment Centre in the City and a minimum of 30 beds in a hostel for homeless people with high complex needs. Members agreed these were needed services and a big achievement.

The Board gave thanks to Officers for their hard work in this area.

RECEIVED.

Report of the Chair of Healthwatch Ciy of London.

Members received a report by Healthwatch City of London providing an update on the progress made since HealthWatch City of London (HWCoL) was established as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) in September 2019.

Members were informed that HWCoL was out of set-up stage and the facility now fully operational. It was noted three staff members were being recruited for with interviews taking place next week. The Chairman recommended targeting the local student accommodation buildings for volunteers.

An Officer stated that the City Corporation remained supportive of HWCoL and continued to provide funding and resources to the charity.

With regards to comments concerning a local community centre, Members were informed that this was not within the City Corporation’s gift and that recommendations would be made to the local community to set up a local advisory group. It was noted that the HWCoL would continue to work with the Tower Hamlets HeathWatch.

RECEIVED.

The Director of the Built Environment to be heard.

Members received a verbal update of the Director of the Built Environment concerning local plan and health implications. 

Members received the following note:

On 3 October 2019, following committee business, a Member of the Planning policy team gave us a presentation on new policy on health Impact Assessments (HIA’s) in the draft Local Plan, which they are currently reviewing. They gave a PowerPoint presentation on HIA’s and their intention to create a new policy in the draft Plan which will require applicants seeking planning permission for developments to fill out a Healthy City Checklist, and for larger developments to carry out and submit a Rapid or Full HIA.  This requirement will help ensure that developments in the City consider how their development will affect the health of workers, residents, visitors and students. Policy officers will produce guidance for developers on what City-specific issues they should be focussing on and a checklist to ensure they have complied. They will consult with members of this committee when drafting the HIA guidance later this year.

The HIA policy has now been included in the draft Plan, which has been considered by the Local Plans sub-committee and will be going to Planning and Transportation Committee on the 31 March, followed by Policy and Resources Committee and Court of Common Council in May. It will then be subject to a further round of public consultation in the summer before being submitted to the Secretary of State for a public examination.

To help in developing this guidance, the Healthy Urban Development Unit (HUDU) are going to conduct a training session on 13 March in the morning at Walbrook Wharf to explain how to carry out Health Impact Assessments and how to adapt them to the City’s unique circumstances. If anyone is interested in attending, numbers permitting,

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

Members received a report of the Director of Community and Children’s Services an providing an overview of local developments and policy issues related to the work of the Board where a full report is not necessary. An update regarding Coronavirus (COVID-19) was included.

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Members were advised that COVID-19 was a developing situation in terms of cases, the countries affected and number of deaths. The current national alert level status of the UK was moderate, but this was subject to change on a daily basis. The City Corporation is following Public Health England’s (PHE) guidance including adhering to the "catch it, bin it, kill it" strategy for sneezing and coughing, and handwashing. Also, the four phases set out by Government in its response to the COVID-19: contain, delay, research and mitigate. External stakeholders are also being directed to this advice.

It was noted that plans were in place for staff, businesses, and the residential community in the City should the situation worsen including cancellation of mass gatherings if deemed necessary. HR advice was being followed and a communications plan in place to engage internally and externally.

With regards to the Port Health Service including the ports of London, the tidal Thames and Heathrow Airport, the Corporation continues to work with PHE to ensure there are no signs of illness on vessels, but it has remained business as usual.

A Member noted that the situation was constantly evolving and that even the daily data on reported cases was out of date. As this was a new virus, it was difficult to resolve as it was not yet understood.

RECEIVED.

There were no questions.

There were no items.

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 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 Part 1 (Schedule 12A) of the Local Government Act.

To agree the non-public minutes of the meeting held on 22 November 2019.

RESOLVED - That the non-public minutes of the meeting held on 22 November 2019 be approved.

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

Members received a report of the Director of Community and Children’s Services setting out new intervention proposals for the Rough Sleeping Options Appraisal.

There were no questions.

There were no items.

To agree the confidential minutes of the meeting held on 22 November 2019.

RESOLVED - That the confidential minutes of the meeting held on 22 November 2019 be approved.