Agenda item

The Panel received a verbal update on the Haringey Health and Wellbeing Board.

Points noted include:

·        The Health and Wellbeing Board takes a strategic approach.

·        It is a forum for discussion and challenge and bringing peers together.

·        It has produced the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment and the Health and Wellbeing Strategy along with it’s delivery plan.

·        It is supporting the Clinical Commissioning Group authorisation process.

·        In terms of Governance, the Act includes a minimum membership of:

o   Elected member of the local council

o   Director of adult services

o    Director of children's services

o    Director of public health

o    Member of the local Healthwatch

o    Representative of Clinical Commissioning Group

·        Regulations are due out this month.

·        Regulations are expected to show exemptions to Section 102 (Local Government Act 1972), political proportionality.

·        It is not yet clear how anomolies will be managed or whether this will be left to local discretion.

·        Haringey Shadow Health and Wellbeing Board has been operating on a small membership basis but with discussions still ongoing about the final membership.  It currently includes:

o   3 Elected Members

o   1 Local Involvement Network representative

o   Director of Adults and Community Housing

o   Director of Public Health

o   Director of Children and Young People

o   4 Clinical Commissioning Group representatives (Chair, Chief Officer, GP and Lay member).

·        The focus thus far has been on organisational development (alongside the Health and Wellbeing Stategy and Delivery Plan and the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment).  A priority area has been consider from each of the Health and Wellbeing Strategy objectives for example a session has been held on each of the following:

o   Antenatal care;

o   Alcohol reduction;

o   Severe and enduring mental health; and

o   Teenage pregnancy.

·        A Haringey Health and Wellbeing Board website will be up and running by April and this will include minutes of the board.

·        The Health Select Committee has quoted the Haringey Health and Wellbeing Board as an example of best practice.

·        There have only been two meetings held of the shadow Health and Wellbeing Board attended by just members of the Board, all other meetings have included various community members and council Officers.

Discussion points noted include:

·        The Panel wished to know what information had been presented to the Health Select Committee on the Haringey shadow Health and Being Board.

·        The Panel wished to know why the minutes of the shadow Health and Wellbeing Board would not be abailable any earlier than April

·        The Panel were informed that the minutes of previous meetings would all be made available when the website goes live.

·        With reference to the involvement of the voluntary and community sector, and their representation on the Health and Wellbeing Board the Panel were informed that this was still under discussion, however they would be involve din task groups which would feed into the Health and Wellbeing Board.

·        The Cabinet Member agreed to get back to the Panel with further information on consultation which is due to take place ahead of the Terms of Reference and arrangements being agreed by Cabinet in March.

·        There will be an announcement on the Haringey website when the Health and Wellbeing Board website goes live.

·        Health and Wellbeing Boards do not need to go through the same kind of authorisation process as Clinical Commissioning Groups.

·        Health and Wellbeing Boards are held to account by Overview and Scrutiny, in Haringey this would be the Adults and Health Scrutiny Panel.

·        The Panel raised concerns that they do not know more about what the shadow Health and Wellbeing Board has been doing, or the future arrangements.  This was not only relevant to the Panel Members but  to Councillors across the Council.

·        The previous Health and Wellbeing Partnership Board was a unique forum in which both commissioners and providers got together.  The Panel raised the query as to where this void could be filled.

o   It was noted that OSC had previously held meetings with commissioner and providers of health to share information and the possibility of the A&HSP doing this was raised.

·        The Co-optee member from the Forum for Older People wished it noted that she did not feel satisfied that she had enough information on the Health and Wellbeing Board to adequately inform the HFOP.

·        The Panel commented that overall the work of the shadow Health and Wellbeing Board sounded positive, and it was therefore puzzled as to why it was not able to get more information on it.

With reference to Healthwatch, the Cabinet Member informed the Panel that discussions are taking place on all options, including a possible fall back option should there not be a provider in a position to be put in place.

Agreed

·        The Cabinet Member would provide the Panel with information on the planned consultation arrangements for the Health and Wellbeing Board arrangements prior to approval at Cabinet in March.

·        The Adults and Health Scrutiny Panel would consider holding information sharing meetings with providers and commissioners on a regular basis to ensure they are able to maintain an overview of changes and key issues in the local health environment.