Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received from the following:

Judy Allfrey

Tracey Baldwin                      represented by Penny Thompson

Eugenia Cronin                     Susan Otiti substituted

Dave Grant                            John Forde substituted

Lisa Redfern

The Chair will consider the admission of any items of Urgent Business. (Late items will be considered under the agenda item where they appear. New items will be dealt with Item 17 below).

No urgent items of business were received.

Members of the Board must declare any personal and/or prejudicial interests with respect to agenda items and must not take part in any decision in relation to these items.

Councillor Dilek Dogus declared that an interest in relation to Item 11 as an employee of the Mental Health Trust.

Ton confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 2 March 2009 as a correct record.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the meeting held on 2 March 2009 be confirmed as a correct record.

To confirm the Chair and Vice-Chair for 2009/10.

RESOLVED:

That Richard Summary be appointed as Chair and Councillor Dilek Dogus be appointed as Vice-Chair for 2009/10.

To appoint a representative from the Well-Being Strategic Partnership Board to the Haringey Strategic Partnership for 2009/10.

RESOLVED:

That Councillor Dilek Dogus be appointed as the Boards representative to the Haringey Strategic Partnership for 2009/10.

The Chair noted that he intended to meet with officers and the Vice-Chair to review the way the meetings were structured with a view to streamlining agendas.

There would be more emphasis on strategic items where the Board could ‘add value’ or shape a decision, rather than receiving information items where there was no scope for this.   

RESOLVED:

That the Boards Membership and Terms of Reference be confirmed for 2009/10.

This report will be sent to follow.

The Board received a report outlining updates to the Well-Being Strategic Framework (WBSF) and Implementation Plan.

It was noted that there were no changes to the way the WBSF was structured. The most significant change had been to the Implementation Plan that had been revised to reflect targets contained Local Area Agreement.

The Chair suggested that rather than presenting the WBSF to each of the HSP Thematic Boards, as recommended in the report, a link should be sent to members of the Boards via email. There was agreement that this was a sensible approach.

In response to a query that Board was advised that volunteering was addressed within under the ‘Making a Positive Contribution’ part of the framework. It was suggested that there should also be specific reference to this within the Implementation Plan.

There was agreement that the document should be revised to set out more clearly which actions and where other Thematic Boards were the lead.

RESOLVED:

1. That the updates to the WBSF and Implementation Plan be noted.

2. That the an email link to the WBSF should be sent to members of the other HSP Thematic Boards and comments sought.

The Board received a report setting out the aims of the Haringey Strategic Partnership’s Strategy for improving the quality of life of older people in the Borough: ‘Experience Still Counts 2009-12’ and the accompanying Delivery Plan.

It was noted that the strategy presented had been formed following a review of the original Experience Counts Strategy in Autumn 2008. There had been extensive consultation with older people in the Borough during the formation of the strategy and it had been shaped by the needs they had identified. There had also been consultation with representatives from across a range of agencies.

The Board was advised that the strategy was due to be considered and adopted by the Council’s Cabinet in June.

The Vice-Chair of the Older People’s Forum noted that there had been extensive consultation with older people during the formation of the strategy and commended its adoption. He also thanked officers for the work that they had done to ensure that the strategy was consulted on as widely as possible.

The Chair echoed this and noted that it was important that expectations were not raised unrealistically.

It was suggested that the document should make reference to how any reduction in funding of Older People’s Care would be dealt with.

There was agreement that an Options Paper following on from the strategy should be drafted and submitted to the Older People’s Partnership and subsequently the WSPB.

RESOLVED:

1. That the WBSPB endorse the revised and updated strategy and Delivery Plan.

2. That an Options Paper following on from the strategy should be drafted and submitted to the Older People’s Partnership and subsequently the WBSPB.

The Board considered a report setting out proposed guidance in relation to the timescale and process for implementation across the respective statutory, voluntary and community sector organisations.

Proposals were also included for an initial twelve month pilot of the project.

The policy aimed to support local health and social care organisations with a view to reimbursing service users for their involvement and the parameters for this were set out in the report.

In response to a query the Board was advised that the Policy had been based on one already in operation in another Borough and reflected examples cited as best practice.  There had been discussion around the level of payments with the Benefits Agency to ensure that these would not affect individuals payments.

There was a general consensus that the statutory agencies involved would need to look at the proposals in more detail and assess the impact that this would have in terms of cost. It was suggested that benchmarking would be useful in order to provide an informed context. The Chair requested that this information was presented to the Well-Being Chairs Executive prior to the next meeting.

RESOLVED:

1. That the policy be supported in principal.

2. That the Well-Being Chairs Executive should be provide with further information (as set out above).

3. That a further report should be submitted to the Board at its next meeting.   

The Board received report setting out the findings of a Mental Well Being Impact Assessment (MWIA) on the Haringey Time Bank scheme.

The MWIA assessed the benefits of the scheme in terms of the mental well-being of residents within Barnet, Enfield and Haringey and would be carried out on an annual basis against two community based projects to determine whether ‘Well-Being London’ funding should be allocated to the projects.

Time Banks provided a mechanism for people to earn ‘time credit’ by giving up their own time in exchange for help. The Time Bank had been established in Northumberland Park as it was recognised as being particularly useful in recognising the assets and skills of members of the community.

It also encouraged community cohesion and independence and reflected both the Council and NHS Haringey’s strategies aimed at supporting community engagement and participation.

There was general support for the Time Bank scheme and it was noted that it provided a good model for community empowerment. The Local Ward Member noted that there were particular challenges in Northumberland Park and that it was a measure of the schemes success that it had been so successfully there.

It was noted that there had been other successful examples of these in London and there was the potential for building on the engagement with the local community and developing the role of the Voluntary and Community Sector further.

The Chair noted that this was particularly timely given the current economic climate. In terms of the implementation and commissioning of the scheme the Chair considered that further work was required to ensure that it was developed properly before it was rolled out.

In conclusion the Chair noted that the Board agreed to the expansion of the scheme in principal. However, it was requested that a further report should be submitted to the Board to providing more detail in relation to implementation and commissioning and the implications for the Council and NHS Haringey.

RESOLVED:

1. That the report be noted.

2. That the expansion of the Time Bank Scheme be supported in principal, subject to a further report being submitted to the Board to providing more detail in relation to implementation and commissioning and the implications for the Council and NHS Haringey.

A verbal update will be provided.

The Board received a verbal update on progress in relation to the ‘Putting People First’ programme.

An overview was provided of the work being carried out against the fourteen work streams that formed the programme and it was noted that service users would begin to sue the new system in the Autumn.

In response to concerns that many service users may not be aware of the changes to the way Care was delivered the Board was advised that it was recognised that this was an issue that required consideration. Support Plans would be constructed for every Service User and this extended to Carers.

Concern was raised that people with multiple physical and mental disabilities would not be able to express their wishes clearly and that this would cause considerable anxiety to family members. It was contended that the model was based around the premise that individuals had families that were able to support them. As this was often not the case it was argued that safety nets were required to ensure that individuals who did not have the support of families.

The Board was reminded that the personalisation agenda was intended to increase individuals independence and ability to make their own choices. Where an individual did not have the mental capacity to make this type of decision the option wouldn’t be available.

In response to a query as to whether the NHS and Council performance monitoring systems were now aligned the Board was advised that the Council had recently introduced a new IT system to monitor performance. The NHS had been contacted to discuss the possibility of extending the use of the system. There was agreement that this issue should be considered by NHS Haringey and that an update should be provided to the Board.

The Board was advised that HAVCO was holding a Voluntary Sector Providers Forum on 22 June that would focus on changes affecting the Sector following the introduction of the Personalisation Agenda. The Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Well Being noted that she was committed to ensuring that the Voluntary was included within discussions on this issue.

Consideration had been given to establishing a Reference Group, however, no decision had been made as yet.  

The Chair requested that the Board should receive an update following the Pilots setting out how the issues raised would be addressed.

RESOLVED:

1. That the verbal update be noted.

2. That the Board should receive a report, following the Pilots that were planned, setting out the issues that had been arisen from these.  

The Board considered the Well-Being Scorecard, which provided an overview of performance against Local Area Agreement (LAA) targets within the Board’s responsibility and Area Based Grant (ABG) funded projects, during the Fourth Quarter of 2008/09.

It was noted that a considerable amount of work had been undertaken between the Council and NHS Haringey to improve the quality of information included within the Scorecard. There was agreement that there should be discussion outside the meeting between NHS Haringey and the Council to determine whether the IT system used by the Council to monitor performance could be shared.

The Chair noted that there needed to be a stronger focus on exception reporting with a covering report and narrative provided. This should also set out the measures being taken to address areas where performance was below target. Where there were long term performance issues an update should be provided rather than a detailed account of the action being taken.  

There was agreement that where targets were measured an on annual basis proxies should be formed so that the Board would be provide with a better picture of performance throughout the year.

RESOLVED:

1. That the report be noted.

2. That future reports should include a covering report including a narrative and setting out the remedial actions being taken to address areas of underperformance.

3. That proxy targets should be formed and reported on at the next meeting where targets were measured annually.

The Board received a report that provided an update on the draft Core Strategy Preferred Options document entitled: ‘A New Plan for Haringey 2011 – 2026’.

It was noted that the document reflected responses received following consultation on an Issues and Options document during February and March 2008 and other key evidence that had been gathered and analysed.

Consultation on the Preferred Options stage would take place between the 5 May and 30 June 2009. As part of this briefings would be given at Area Assembly meetings and other public forums and information would be available on the Council’s website.

The Chair noted that there needed to be sufficient flexibility within the Core Strategy to deal with large issues affecting the Borough such as climate change and the economic climate. The Board was advised that the Strategy would be reviewed over it’s lifetime and it would be adapted to reflect issues such as these that arose.

RESOLVED:

That the report be noted.

The Board received a report that providing an update in relation to progress in producing Haringey’s Housing Strategy 2009-19.

This was an overarching document with several more detailed strategies beneath it including:

• Homelessness Strategy
• Affordable Warmth Strategy
• ‘Move On’ Strategy

The Integrated Housing Board (IHB) was responsible for the development of the strategy and sub-strategies.

Concern was raised around the provision of housing designed to meet the needs of people within the Autistic Spectrum. It was noted that there had meetings between the Council and individuals representing groups with an interest in this issue where there had been agreement that this type of housing was required.

The Board was advised that housing officers and senior officers from ACCS had met with Haringey Autism to discuss the merits of specialised housing. This issue would be dealt with in more detail in the new Lettings Policy (being developed later in the year) and in the other sub strategies sitting beneath the Housing Strategy.  

The Board was advised that the Older People’s Strategy fed into the Housing Strategy and that there were links, where appropriate, to each of the sub strategies.

The Chair noted that in the long term the Housing Strategy would need to be reviewed to ensure that it was still fit for purpose. In the more immediate future consideration would need to be given to the impact of the Recession.

RESOLVED:

That the outcome of consultation on the Housing Strategy 2009-19 be noted.

To receive a brief update from Partners of the most prevalent issues effecting their organisation.

The Board received brief verbal from NHS Haringey, Barnet Enfield and Haringey (BEH) Mental Health Trust, Whittington Hospital and HAVCO.

NHS Haringey

The Chair advised that the PCT remained unable to set its budget following receipt of a substantially lower settlement. This had been compounded by changes to the way that payments were made for acute services.

Along with other North London Boroughs Haringey had received one of the lowest settlements in the country and this meant that a lot of work was required to ensure that the money available was used as effectively was possible.  The Council was represented by the Director of ACCS on a multi agency group that been established to monitor how this would impact on Partners. Information would continue to be shared with partners via this group.

The Board was reminded that this was a reduction in growth rather than a cut to funding for existing services.

BEH Mental Health Trust

The Trust had recently been served with an Improvement Notice for the St Ann’s site and this was being addressed at present.

In terms of the Trusts application for Foundation status it was anticipated that this would be achieved by February 2010.

Whittington Hospital

The Board was advised that the hospital was debating its strategic future at present and whether an application for Foundation Trust status would be made.

HAVCO

It was noted the jointly funded Third Sector Mapping Exercise was due to begin shortly and that this would provide a base line for the whole of the Sector in Haringey.

To consider any new items of Urgent Business admitted under Item 2 above.

No new items of Urgent Business had been submitted.  

To consider any items of AOB.

No items of AOB were raised.

To note the dates of future meetings set out below:

• 24 September 2009
• 8 December 2009
• 25 February 2010

The following dates of future meetings were noted:

• 24 September 2009
• 8 December 2009
• 25 February 2010