Agenda item

To receive an update on the Council’s response to the recommendations of the ‘Living Through Lockdown’ report.

The report was published in August 2020 by the Joint Partnership Board and is provided in full in this pack.

Gill Taylor introduced the update responding to the recommendations of the Joint Partnership Board’s (JPB) Living Through Lockdown report, highlighting some examples including the strengthening of the Council’s co-production activity and the recruitment of a Participation Lead, the establishment of a Digital Inclusion Network and the development of a Food Strategy. Helena Kania, also a Co-Chair of the JPB, welcomed the update and said that the JPB members appreciated the opportunity for the recommendations to be monitored by the Scrutiny Panel on an annual basis.

Gill Taylor then responded to questions from the Panel:

• Referring to the section of the update on Housing and Sheltered Accommodation, Cllr Peacock commented that defibrillators should be more widely available in sheltered housing schemes. Gill Taylor agreed to take this query back for a response. (ACTION)
• Asked by Cllr Connor about the ongoing restrictions on visitors to care homes, Gill Taylor said that measures still in place were due to some vulnerable residents shielding on a case-by-case basis rather than blanket bans on visitors. Vicky Murphy added that the number of visitors were restricted in some care homes and that, with winter approaching, measures could be subject to change but the aim was for at least one named person to be able to visit each resident in circumstances where restrictions are necessary.
• Asked by Cllr Connor whether there were figures available on the take up for bereavement counselling specific to those with learning difficulties (Mental Health and Wellbeing section, point number 2), Gill Taylor said that she would provide this data to the Panel. (ACTION)
• Cllr Connor queried how the inter-service referrals for mental health patients for extra support (Mental Health and Wellbeing section, point number 6) would be monitored. Gill Taylor responded that the number of referrals wasn’t being measured specifically but that the focus was on the new multi-disciplinary locality approach which enabled staff to better connect with local community services.
• Cllr Connor queried whether any personal assistant capacity had been increased by commissioning through Disability Action Haringey (DAH) (Personal Budgets and Assistants section, point number 3). Officers agreed to provide a written response to the Panel on this. (ACTION)
• Cllr Connor requested that further information should be provided to the Panel on the success or failure of e-consultations (NHS and Care Services section, point number 9). (ACTION)
• Cllr Connor requested that further information should be provided to the Panel on the commitment to share information with the JPB on the strategy and vision for opticians and dentists (NHS and Care Services section, point number 12). (ACTION)
• Cllr Iyngkaran asked whether there was any data on the number of toilets kept open in parks and how parks were being kept safer (Park and Recreation section, point numbers 4 & 5). Gill Taylor said that the engagement work with residents and user groups typically provided qualitative data on park safety. Helena Kania expressed concerns about park gates not being locked which led to anti-social behaviour at night. Data on park toilets could be provided to the Panel in writing. (ACTION)

Cllr Connor recommended that the next update report on the Living Through Lockdown report included a focus on the new initiatives that the Council were establishing as these were not necessarily obvious from the current report format. (ACTION)

The Panel discussed the timescales for the next update report and Cllr Connor suggested that September 2023 would be suitable to enable an annual update, but it was agreed that this could be adjusted if required depending on developments. (ACTION)