Agenda item

To agree to establish a strategic partnership forum, to agree to establish a senior strategic group to look at Health in All Policies and how this is embedded in the work of the Health and Wellbeing Board, and to agree that key outcomes will be developed through the senior strategic group.

Susan Otiti, Assistant Director of Public Health, introduced the report which provided an update on the Health in All Policies (HiAP) work and proposed the establishment of a strategic partnership forum and a small senior strategic group to develop proposed outcomes. It was explained that HiAP was designed to consider the health impact of policies in all areas with the aim of improving health overall. It was explained that HiAP had been operating in Haringey for several years and it drew on London and national best practice.

Marlene D’Aguilar, Health in All Policies Officer, noted that HiAP work had been undertaken with Environmental Health in developing a School Superzone pilot where any retailers located within 400m of a school were required to join the Responsible Retailers scheme. Work was also ongoing with Planning and Regeneration to undertake Heath Impact Assessments for large planning applications; it was reported that this had led to some improved designs for housing and the surrounding areas. It was also noted that Haringey was the first council to ban advertisements for items that were high in fat, sugar, and salt through a new Advertising and Sponsorship Policy.

Paul Ely, External Project Manager, noted that a new Parks and Green Spaces Strategy was also being developed. He explained that there had been increased use of parks and green spaces during the Covid-19 pandemic which had highlighted the importance of access to these spaces for health and wellbeing; it was identified that a lack of access to parks and green spaces in some areas was a key issue. It was noted that park management usually focused on park design, maintenance, and provision rather than usage. However, through the development of the strategy, capacity was being increased to engage with more vulnerable communities to consider usage. It was added that there was a pilot project at Lordship Rec and Albert Road Park which focused on park usage for older people and considered what worked in relation to marketing, making reasonable adaptations, and providing more direct support to targeted users. 

The Assistant Director of Public Health explained that there were additional examples of the HiAP approach within the full report but that the programme would benefit from partnership oversight. For this reason, the report asked the Health and Wellbeing Board to agree to establish a partnership forum and a small, strategic group to embed HiAP work and report regularly on outcomes to the Board. The Chair stated that this was an excellent idea and that this would provide oversight to ensure joined up partnership work and maximum effect.

Geoffrey Ocen, Bridge Renewal Trust, noted that HiAP was important policy work but enquired how HiAP was translated effectively into different schemes and whether this relied on other agencies and partners. The Assistant Director of Public Health explained that Public Health influenced and supported HiAP work within the Council and the NHS; it was noted that there was some capacity within Planning and Regeneration, the Policy Team, and within the NHS and that HiAP used existing resources alongside a stronger policy approach.

Rachel Lissauer, CCG Director of Integration, welcomed the proposals. She noted that, as part of the borough partnership, there was a Place Board. It was stated that the connection between this proposal and the Place Board was important and it was hoped that the small, strategic group proposed would enable these connections. The Assistant Director of Public Health explained that it would be possible to use the Place Board as the strategic partnership forum for HiAP but she did not want to add to the Board’s heavy workload. It was noted that, if there was a separate strategic forum, it would be important to ensure that there were connections with the Place Board.

Jonathan Gardner, Whittington Health NHS Trust Director of Strategy, noted that he was a Co-Chair of the Place Board and that he would be happy to discuss how the strategic partnership forum would relate to existing arrangements and what format would work best for the HiAP aims. The Chair agreed that this would be an appropriate course of action and asked for a future update on this. It was stated that the recommendations were supported by the Health and Wellbeing Board, subject to some initial consideration and discussion on the relationship between HiAP and the Place Board.

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RESOLVED

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Subject to some initial consideration and discussion on the relationship between HiAP and the Place Board, to:

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1.    Establish a strategic partnership forum to take this forward, similar to the Start Well, Live Well, and Age Well groups;

2.    Establish a small senior strategic group to look at Health in All Policies and how we embed this in the work of the Health and Wellbeing Board;

3.    Develop some key outcomes through this strategic group, such as improving environments around school, improving air quality, improving health outcomes for parks and green spaces and influencing the quality of housing and developments.