Agenda and minutes

No declarations were made.

Resolved –  That the minutes of the meeting held on 28^th September 2016 be approved as a correct record.

The Board received an update report on a number of membership issues. 

In view of the specific circumstances in Slough relating to the delivery of children’s services, and the priority that the Board had given to the protection of vulnerable children in the refreshed Slough Joint Wellbeing Strategy, approval was sought to recommend to full Council that the Chief Executive of Slough Children’s Services Trust be appointed to the Wellbeing Board.  It was also reported that the Leader of Council had decided to nominate the Commissioner for Health & Social Care as the sole elected member on the Board for the remainder of the municipal year.  The Board considered both matters, and agreed to recommend these changes to full Council at the meeting on 29^th November 2016.

Members also noted that Jo Moxon had joined the Board as a statutory member following her appointment as the Interim Director of Children’s Services and Mark Gaskarth was confirmed as the representative of the Royal Berkshire Fire & Rescue Service.

Recommended to Council –

(a)  That the Chief Executive of Slough Children’s Services Trust be appointed to the Slough Wellbeing Board.

(b)  That the nomination of the Leader of the Council that the Commissioner for Health & Social Care be the sole councillor representative on the Slough Wellbeing Board be noted, and that the membership of the Board be adjusted accordingly.

Resolved –

(c)  That it be noted that Jo Moxon, Interim Director of Children’s Services had joined the Board as a statutory member.

(d)  That it be noted that Mark Gaskarth be confirmed as the representative of the Royal Berkshire Fire & Rescue Service.

The Board considered a report that sought input to help shape the actions being developed for delivery of the mental health profiles in the next five years, mainly in relation to the identified gaps and areas of concern set out in section 6 of the report.  The discussion would help focus the Board’s themed discussion on mental health at the meeting on 26^th January 2017.

Members discussed several identified gaps including the impacts of loneliness and isolation on mental health; the future development and capacity of the Slough ‘Recovery College’; the responsibilities of employers to support their employees experiencing mental health issues; and the additional actions to address the rate of suicides locally.

At the conclusion of the discussion the specific issues identified for consideration at themed discussion in January should include:

·  Dual diagnosis of mental health problems related to substance misuse and alcohol misuse, including the links to the Housing Strategy.

·  The strategic role of the SWB; and

·  What more could the Board do to promote the Mental Health 4 Life programme to local employers?

Resolved –

(a)  That the report be noted.

(b)  That the Board give further consideration to the identified gaps and issues as part of the themed discussion at the next meeting.

The Independent Chair of Slough Local Safeguarding Children’s Board (SLSCB), Nick Georgiou, introduced the Annual Report 2015-16 and updated members on more recent progress since April 2016.  Mr Georgiou, who also chaired the Adults Safeguarding Board, had recently succeeded Phil Picton as the Independent Chair.

Mr Georgiou summarised the key aspects of the report including the actions undertaken in response to the six Ofsted recommendations and the progress on addressing the six themes in the Business Plan 2016-17.  This included the agreement and implementation of revised multi-agency threshold guidance; more effective processes on quality assurance; and action to strengthen LSCB oversight of the multi-agency response to children at risk of exploitation.  Mr Georgiou highlighted the importance of putting in place a funding agreement to ensure the LSCB was sufficiently resourced to undertake its core business.

The Board discussed the potential further improvements that could be made to the training provided to ensure it was properly co-ordinated with the programmes provided by individual partners.  As part of a wider discussion on engagement, attendance at Board meetings was raised and it was agreed that further information be circulated on the reasons for the low attendance of the primary school representative on the Board.  Members noted and welcomed the strengthened relationship between the SLCB and Slough Children’s Services Trust.

Other issues raised included the issue of children out of education and the work of the Improvement Board.  Mr Georgiou was asked about the timescales for delivery of the action plan and it was responded that the plan would be refined after further multi-agency work.  A further progress report could be considered by the Slough Wellbeing Board before the next annual report was produced next Autumn and it was agreed that an information report detailing progress be submitted to the Board in May 2017.

Resolved –

(a)  That the Slough Local Safeguarding Children’s Board 2015-16 Annual Report be noted.

(b)  That the Board receive an Information Report in May 2017 providing an update on the progress being made in implementing the delivery plan.

A report was considered that sought agreement of the principles of a draft protocol between the Slough Wellbeing Board, Healthwatch Slough and the Council’s Health Scrutiny Panel. 

The draft protocol had been discussed with Healthwatch and the chair of the Health Scrutiny Panel.  It was recognised that the protocol may need to be revised to reflect the decision making processes of partners, particularly the Council, and on occasions the CCG, to ensure that the flow of reporting and approval was properly co-ordinated.  In view of the significant current issues such as the Sustainability & Transformation Plan and the integration of health and social care, it was important that the governance and scrutiny arrangements were clear and understood by partners.

At the conclusion of the discussion, the Board approved the general principles of the draft Protocol.

Resolved –  That the general principles set out in the draft Protocol, as attached at Appendix A to the report, be agreed, subject to any final amendments from members.

The Board considered a report seeking approval of the general principles of a protocol between the Slough Wellbeing Board, Slough Local Safeguarding Children’s Board, Slough Adults Safeguarding Board, Safer Slough Partnership Board, Preventing Violent Extremism Group and the Joint Parenting Panel.

The draft set out in Appendix A to the report was a refreshed version of the protocol adopted in 2015 and was based on consultation with the chairs and lead officers of the relevant bodies.  The protocol would be considered at relevant meetings of each of the signatories for approval.  The Board recognised the importance of ensuring the strongest possible relationships the bodies and partnership listed and agreed to the general principles of the protocol.

Resolved –  That the general principles set out in the draft Protocol, as at Appendix A to the report, be agreed subject to any final amendments from members.

The Board held a themed discussion on engaging people to share ideas and feed into the work to develop the way in which partners engaged and worked with communities.  The Council’s Head of Wellbeing and Community Services, Ketan Gandhi, gave a presentation titled ‘Developing a one Slough approach to working with our communities’ that set out some of the current work being undertaken and plans to help better equip communities to have a role in contributing to their wellbeing.

Slough had good foundations for community engagement with a strong voluntary sector, emerging youth voice and examples of good practice across public sector partners.  However, it was recognised that more could be done jointly to co-ordinate and share activity to maximise the impact of engagement.  The work being undertaken by the Council in Manor Park was used as an example of the new approach to develop a ‘one council approach’ to working with communities, ensure linkages to wider initiatives and ‘putting people first’.  The approach sought to work together across Council departments and use existing mechanisms where possible.  It was expected that the Council’s approach would be in place by the end of January and then expanded more widely with other partners where appropriate.  The Chair highlighted that engagement had been a key priority for the new leadership of the Council and the Leader was now active on social media and was seeking to reach out to and listen to communities.

The Board had a wide ranging discussion during which partners cited a number of examples that they felt had been particularly effective in engaging people and identified several areas in need of improvement.  These included too many cases of poorly designed consultations; uncoordinated activity between partners and at times a ‘tick box’ culture.  It was recognised that the techniques used to engage people needed to be carefully thought through to ensure they were effective in meeting the aims of the consultation or engagement, and that people engaged felt it had been a positive and useful experience in which their voice had been heard.  The Board was made aware of the ‘think local act personal’ ladder of co-production and it was agreed that a copy be circulated to Board members.

The recent success of the Slough Youth Parliament was cited as an example of what could be achieved by working with people to help them play a more active role in the local community.  The Board discussed the factors that had contributed to the development of the Youth Parliament and agreed that communication, clearly defined roles and encouraging young people to take ownership were all important features.  Other recent and current examples included work to improve the Children in Care Council and the engagement people with learning disabilities and their families in the reconfiguration of day centre services including the closure of the Elliman Centre.

It was acknowledged that there were many practical challenges to engagement and that some partners were more effective than others.  The experience of engagement in health was considered and it was noted that that data from the National Patients Survey often showed that people’s perceptions of the service did not match the reality.  For example, access to GP services in Slough was comparatively better than many neighbouring areas but the survey data indicated that that was not patient’s perception.  Communication and engagement was therefore crucial in shaping public opinion and expectations.

The Board also felt that more could be done to celebrate success and highlight examples of good practice.  It was felt that the SWB annual conference would be a good opportunity to showcase some of the excellent work being undertaken.  At the conclusion of the discussion, it was proposed and agreed that the Board arrange a separate follow up session focused on community engagement to take forward the discussion and identify some common areas where further joint working could be effective.

Resolved – 

(a)  That the Board hold a follow up session on community engagement to focus on identifying and sharing best practice.

(b)  That the Chair, Vice-Chair and other relevant partners meet to consider any further practical steps to further promote the improvement of community engagement practice across the partnership.

The Board considered its Forward Work Plan for forthcoming meeting.  It was agreed that discussion take place with the CCG about the timing for the Commissioning Intentions and Plan in next year’s work programme.

It was also agreed that Local Plan documentation be circulated to the Board in advance of agenda for January 2017.

The following amendments were made to the Work Programme:

·  Draft Prevention Strategy to be moved to March.

·  1st Draft of SWB Annual Report to be an information item only.

Resolved –  That the Forward Work Programme be noted.

The Interim Director of Adult Social Services updated the Board on the current position regarding the Frimley Sustainability & Transformation Plan (STP).  The plans would shortly be published and would be circulated to members of the Board.  The STP could unlock transformation funding if and when approved by NHS England.

There would be a series of briefing and engagement events following publication and partners were encouraged to attend and participate in such sessions.  It was proposed and agreed that the Board hold a joint workshop with the Health Scrutiny Panel to consider the specific implications of the STP for Slough.

Resolved –

(a)  That the update be noted.

(b)  That the STP be circulated to the Board upon publication; and

(c)  That a joint session be arranged between the Wellbeing Board and Health Scrutiny Panel to give further consideration to the local implications of the STP.

The Board considered a noted an information report that set out the mid-year position on the Better Care Fund (BCF) programme for 2016/17.

Resolved –  That the information report be noted.

The Board considered and noted the report on the Slough Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Commissioning Intentions and Operating Plan.  Dr O’Donnell summarised the key aspects of the report and members of the Board were invited to submit any specific comments directly to the CCG.  As an annual plan, it was agreed that the timescales for next year be clarified to ensure it was included in the SWB Work Programme.

Resolved –  That the report be noted and that members provide any feedback directly to Slough CCG.

Resolved –  That the report be noted.

The Board reviewed key outcomes from the meeting and learning points for future meetings.

The date of the next meeting was confirmed as 26^th January 2017.