Agenda and draft minutes

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The Chair of the meeting has the discretion to terminate or suspend filming or recording, if in his or her opinion continuation of the filming, recording or reporting would disrupt or prejudice the proceedings, infringe the rights of any individual, or may lead to the breach of a legal obligation by the Council.

The Chair referred Members present to agenda Item 1 as shown on the agenda in respect of filming at this meeting, and Members noted the information contained therein’.

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Cllr Tricia Clarke (Islington), Cllr Philip Cohen (Barnet), Cllr Andy Milne (Enfield) and Cllr Larraine Revah (Camden).

Apologies for lateness were received from Cllr Kemi Atolagbe (Camden) who joined the meeting from 11.55am until the end of the meeting.

It was also noted that Cllr Joseph Croft (Islington) and Cllr Paul Edwards (Barnet) had been appointed to the Committee for 2025/26 since the agenda papers had been published and, although they had been invited to the meeting at very short notice, they also had provided their apologies.

As the meeting was not quorate, it was noted that it could only continue as an informal briefing and that any formal decisions would need to be deferred to a future quorate meeting.

The Chair will consider the admission of any late items of Urgent Business.

None.

Cllr Pippa Connor declared an interest by virtue of her membership of the Royal College of Nursing

Cllr Pippa Connor also declared an interest by virtue of her sister working as a GP in Tottenham.

To consider any requests received in accordance with Part 4, Section B, paragraph 29 of the Council’s constitution.

None.

·         North London NHS Foundation Trust

NOTE: This report is currently a draft version as there are sections to be added prior to the publication of the final version, including the feedback from the JHOSC.

The Committee received details of the Quality Accounts of the North London NHS Foundation Trust for 2024/25 from Vincent Kirchner (Chief Medical Officer), Manny Gnanaraj (Chief Nursing and AHP Officer), and Mandy Stevens (Interim Director of Nursing – Quality Governance).

Vincent Kirchner highlighted some key points from the draft report:

• The North London NHS Foundation Trust (NLFT) had been officially established on 1^st November 2024 following a merger of the two mental health trusts in North Central London (NCL).
• A set of six new Trust Values had been established following workshops, feedback sessions and surveys involving over 600 staff.
• Recent progress on estates had included the opening of Highgate East in March 2024, a new 78-bed mental health inpatient facility, and the opening of Lowther Road, a new Integrated Community Mental Health Centre in April 2024. Highgate East had recently won an award at the European Healthcare Designs Awards.
• There had also been progress with person-centred care planning through DIALOG+ which supported personalised, proactive conversations to empower service users to take charge of their recover journey.
• Through the Longer Lives initiative, more than 60% of people with serious mental illness had a physical health check in 2024-25, exceeding the national target. This involved collaboration with GPs and aimed to identify issues such as metabolic disease, lung disease, cancer and tobacco dependence in people with serious mental illness.
• The Trust was committed to a Trauma-Informed approach with an active Trauma Informed Collaborative and plans to roll out ‘Schwartz Rounds’ in 2025/26 which provided opportunities for staff to reflect on the emotional impact of experiences at work.
• The Trust’s four Quality Priorities for 2024-25 had been:

o   Providing consistently high-quality care, closer to home.

o   Working in partnership across North London to ensure equity of outcome for all.

o   Offer great places to work, providing staff with a supportive environment to deliver excellent care.

o   To be more effective as an organisation by pioneering research, Quality Improvement and technology.

Manny Gnanaraj set out the Trust’s four Quality Priorities for 2025-26, which had been developed following consultation and engagement with staff. The four Quality Priorities included carrying forward two of the Priorities from 2024-25:

• To continue to learn and develop as an organisation from patient and carer feedback.
• To ensure patients receive support in a therapeutic and safe environment.
• Offer great places to work, providing staff with a supportive environment to deliver excellent care.
• Providing consistently high-quality care, closer to home.

Vincent Kirchner, Manny Gnanaraj and Mandy Stevens then responded to questions from the Committee:

• Referring back to the priorities raised by the Committee the previous year, Cllr Connor said that the lack of supported housing for post-discharge patients had been a concern. She noted that this was referred to in the 2024/25 draft Quality Accounts but did not include any specific plans or collaboration with local authorities to address this. Vincent Kirchner said that it was acknowledged in the draft report that people who were Clinically Ready and Fit for Discharge  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.