Agenda and minutes

It was noted that the meeting of 14 July 2021 was inquorate; it was agreed that the meeting would continue on an informal basis and acknowledged that any decisions made must be ratified at the next quorate meeting.

Apologies were received from Councillor Ian Brookfield, Councillor Linda Leach, Sally Roberts, Professor David Loughton CBE and Dr Ranjit Khutan.

Councillor Stephen Simkins attended virtually for Councillor Ian Brookfield and Ian Darch attended in person for Laura Thomas.

There were no declarations of interest.

[To approve the minutes of the previous meeting as a correct record.]

Resolved:

That the minutes of the meeting of 28 April 2021 be approved as a correct record subject to the correction of Councillor Wendy Thompson’s role on the Board and ratification at the next quorate meeting of Health and Wellbeing Together.

[To consider any matters arising from the minutes of the previous meeting.]

There were no matters arising from the minutes of the previous meeting.

[To receive the Health and Wellbeing Together Forward Plan 2021 - 2022.]

Madeleine Freewood, Stakeholder Engagement Manager, presented the Health and Wellbeing Together Forward Plan 2021 – 2022 and outlined future meetings and agenda items.

It was highlighted that the Joint Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy report was on the agenda for the October meeting of full board as a follow-up to the update scheduled on the July agenda and would likely be a joint update with partners.

It was added that work on the Health Inequalities Strategy was progressing well and it was thought that the final draft would be ready to present at the October meeting of full board.

Resolved:

That the Health and Wellbeing Together Forward Plan 2021 – 2022 be noted.

[To receive the Wolverhampton COVID-19 Outbreak Control Plan Report.]

John Denley, Director of Public Health, presented the Wolverhampton COVID-19 Outbreak Control Plan report with supporting presentation. The presentation provided an epidemiological update on the current COVID-19 situation in the City.

In terms of case rates per 100,000 people, the first graph showed Wolverhampton ranking as lower than its neighbouring authorities. The graph depicting daily case rates showed there was still cause for concern as Wolverhampton cases had quadrupled in the last three weeks.

In terms of age, a heat map showed that the virus was prevalent in the 19-24 and 11-16 age groups. It was noted that public health continued to work closely with schools to offer support as this affected secondary school-aged children and young people.

It was acknowledged that the vaccine was providing very effective levels of protection against serious illness and had made a positive impact in reducing hospital admissions. Despite this, it was stressed that the vaccine alone did not prevent transmission and caution should still be exercised as the dominant variant was extremely infectious. 

Testing showed that around 26,000 tests were being undertaken on a weekly basis however it was stressed that it was important to maintain this momentum.

It was reported that fears around the vaccine causing illness had been expressed at various community discussions. Assurances were offered that over 163,000 had now received the vaccination and, although some side effects were possible, it would have begun to show in the statistics if the vaccine caused illness. It was stressed that the vaccine did not prevent catching the virus but did work towards preventing serious illness.

It was noted that accessibility to vaccines rather than hesitancy had begun to emerge as a barrier to some residents, therefore mobile vaccination units were being rolled out across the City to increase opportunities to be vaccinated. Uptake among care workers had been low however there had been some improvement and progress had also been made encouraging uptake amongst ethnic populations.

Sally Roberts, Wolverhampton Safeguarding Board expressed her thanks to the public health team for the collaborative working and excellent results.

Emma Bennett, Director of Children’s and Adult Services reported that Incident Management Team (IMT) meetings continued to take place with public health and education colleagues as well as continual engagement with schools to offer support in navigating the national guidance. Headteachers would be on call the first few weeks of the holidays to manage any incidents of track and trace.

Ian Darch, Third Sector Partnership added that Wolverhampton had responded well to reduce the damage caused by the COVID crisis as well as providing clarity of communication throughout. It was noted that the weekly IMT meetings, efforts of headteachers, teaching staff and school community, as well as the voluntary sector should all be recognised and it was thought that the City of Wolverhampton was in a better position because of collaborative working.

Councillor Beverley Momenabadi, Cabinet member for Children and young People also added that communications had been easy to follow and the tables outlining details  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

[To approve the Public Health Annual Report 2020 – 2021.]

John Denley, Director of Public Health, presented the Public Health Annual Report 2020 – 2021 and highlighted key points. It was outlined that the report was a statutory requirement and served as the Director of Public Health’s professional statement about the health and wellbeing of their local communities.

The report sought to inform professionals and members of the public about key issues in the City over the past year throughout the pandemic as well as identifying current priorities and highlight required action for the improvement and protection of the health of the local population.

It was noted that it seemed fitting to focus on the City response to the impact of COVID-19, how it had exacerbated existing health inequalities and how the Council looked to address these as well as working to reinvigorate the City in the Relight project. The report took into account all the learning from COVID, such as providing support for communities during the lockdown periods, data gathered and the importance of partnership working.

Ian Darch, Third Sector Partnership, again reiterated that partnership working had been key but despite some sectors receiving additional income from central government, the voluntary sector had shrunk nationally because of the impact of COVID. Wolverhampton had been no exception and the plea moving forward was to focus on the value of the Wolverhampton pound, making use of existing resources and valuing local organisations that are remaining. It was noted that it was also important to avoid duplication so that no-one missed out in other areas. Sustainability was also touched on and ensuring continuing support for organisations during periods where funding wasn’t coming in. 

Thanks were offered and the Public Health team were commended for their hard work over a particularly challenging year.

Resolved:

That the Public Health Annual Report 2020 – 2021 be approved subject to ratification at the next quorate meeting.

[To receive a verbal update on outcomes from the partnership workshop held on 18 June 2021.]

Becky Wilkinson, Deputy Director of Adult Services and Tom Denham, Head of Adult Services delivered a presentation to provide Health and Wellbeing Together with an update on the feedback gathered from the Building a Health and Wellbeing Economy Adult Social Care Focus Workshop held on 18 June 2021.

It was outlined that attendees were divided into two groups; one focusing on Care Enterprise and the other on Care Employment. The Care Enterprise theme explored challenges around commissioning and funding whilst Care Employment examined recruitment and staff retention.

It was acknowledged that the workshop sessions had prompted some productive discussions from which a series of next steps had been formulated. These outcomes were presented to Health and Wellbeing Together and it was agreed to maintain a feedback loop of progress between Health and Wellbeing Together Board and the Relight ‘Workforce’ and ‘Procurement and Commissioning’ anchor network groups.

Resolved:

That a feedback loop be maintained between Health and Wellbeing Together Board and the Relight ‘Workforce’ and ‘Procurement and Commissioning’ anchor network groups.

[To receive a joint update on the progress of the Public Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy and on the transformation of mental health services.]

Dr Jamie Annakin, Principal Public Health Specialist delivered the Joint Public Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy Update. It was reported that that the strategy was created in partnership with Wolverhampton City Council with Wolverhampton CCG, who were looking to refresh the priorities of the Strategy as it was coming towards the end of its three-year cycle.

The existing Strategy promoted the importance of good mental health and access to services for the care of people with mental health problems. It was noted that indicators within the previous Strategy had provided information on what the issues were but not the cause.

The refreshed priorities were identified as:

1. To review the overarching evaluation and monitoring framework (wider determinants, vulnerable groups, service activity, health and care outcomes);
2. To assess Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health
3. (Population level survey, systematic review of service data and emerging evidence, engage groups at increased risk of mental health problems to understand risk and protective factors;
4. To make recommendations for future strategic focus of mental health and Wellbeing interventions across the City.

It was also reported that a successful bid had been submitted to Public Health England for funding for a number of projects and programmes. This included looking at a new approach to the needs assessment and survey, as well as a systematic review on what we know of COVID’s impact on mental health and wellbeing. It was acknowledged that early engagement was key and identifying how a real difference could be made in communities.

Marsha Foster, Black Country Healthcare Foundation Trust provided an update on the work of the Trust around mental health services. It was reported that it was currently in the process of developing a clinical strategy and thanks were given to all partners who had been involved in engagement for that strategy. In addition, funding had been received and allocated for the transformation of the mental health service. Part of that transformation was the development of access and pathways to provide earlier intervention and working closely with social care and third sector partners. It was reiterated that a further update would likely be provided alongside the October update on the Joint Public Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy.

It was again acknowledged that partnership working was important and the funding was welcomed on both counts as it was felt that mental health had not received enough investment in the past. It was recorded that recognition be given to those in the voluntary sector such as ACCI, and organisations providing social prescribing and working with GPs to support isolated and vulnerable people.

Resolved:

That the Joint Public Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy Update including Mental Health Service Transformation Update be received.

[To consider any items of business by reason of special circumstances (to be specified) that in the opinion of the Chair are matters of urgency.]

There was no other urgent business.