Agenda and draft minutes

The Chair opened the meeting at 09:36 am and welcomed members and officers to the meeting.  Anne Rackham and Morgan Price were introduced to the Panel.

No apologies were received.

The Chair invited those who wished to do so to declare any interests in respect of items on the agenda.

No declarations of interest were received.

Councillor Harrison requested that the following typographical errors be corrected; 

• ‘are’ to be amended to ‘care’ on page 7 paragraph 8 and;
• that LWF be corrected to LRF.

It was AGREED:

That with the amendments above, the minutes of the Health, Wellbeing & Vulnerable People Executive Advisory Panel held on 28 January 2022 be approved as a true and accurate record of the meeting.

The full presentation had formed part of an earlier Panel discussion at the meeting held 28 January 2022. Members welcomed the opportunity for discussion with the Northamptonshire Health and Care Partnership (NHCP) team.

A Rackham outlined the road map for services alongside the agreed vision for the Mental Health Collaborative which set ‘to coproduce seamless, responsive pathways of integrated mental health and care services across Northamptonshire.’ The presentation indicated a left shift from a crisis NHS response in Mental Health to a preventative approach through Community and Voluntary Services.

Members requested a list detailing current and future joint commissioning opportunities. It was agreed that an existing list would be circulated to members of the Panel.

M Price outlined the phased approach to contracts and emphasised the time and space needed for the system to come together. Members were directed to the tranches of implementation which highlighted Adult Mental Health as a first tranche service. The remainder of services would be decided upon when assessments were made over the feasibility and safety of implementation at a given time.

The Panel considered the overview of the NHCP Mental Health Collaborative and raised the following principal points:

              i.        Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (NHFT) as a lead provider could lead to a perception of conflicts of interest, despite being the best placed host provider at present. Consideration should be given by the Integrated Care Board (ICB) as to how this would work with the collaborative Integrated Care System (ICS).

            ii.        The ICB should use its assurance processes to oversee contract changes/chares.

           iii.        Budget stability and support for the Voluntary Sector should be a priority.

           iv.        The flow of financial support in response to need seen within Health & Social Care should be replicated at all levels.

            v.        The flow of resources for Mental Health should be more fluid to provide a stronger offer for children.

           vi.        Barriers to contacting the right person at the right time should be removed.

          vii.        A single narrative across services and collaboratives is essential for improving Mental health.

         viii.        Data profiling should be developed to look at user experience and waiting times.

           ix.        A full integration between mental and physical health should be considered.

            x.        Feedback following a review of successes and learning gained would be beneficial to track annual process, focussing on ‘I Can’ statements

It was AGREED:

a)    That the Panel noted the Case for Change for the NHCP Mental Health Collaborative.

To discuss the programme of work undertaken to define the future working arrangements with Voluntary, Community and Social Care Sector and to make recommendations to the Executive

The Panel considered a report presented by the Strategic Lead for Communities and Wellbeing which detailed the current funding arrangements between the Council and VCSE organisations inherited from the sovereign councils.

Members were asked to comment on the proposal to continue with the current funding arrangements for a two-year extension. The scope of the extension included the opportunity to strengthen the Performance Indicators and to review the project briefs and Grant Agreements.

Members were directed to note the specialist support outlined at Appendix 1 and consider the links with corporate priorities.

During discussion, the Panel raised the following principal points:

1. The programme of work provided a good opportunity for disparity in funding across former sovereign council areas to be addressed.

2. There should be an addition in funding to account for inflation.

3. Any change should form a controlled and phased approach to mitigate shock to the Voluntary Sector budgets.

4. The works should seek to design a system to address the identified gap between applications considered at the grants panel and those that are decide by the Executive.

5. During the two year period a comprehensive review of organisations should be undertaken

6. Expertise should be shared to support both charities and the Voluntary Sector within North Northamptonshire.

7. Core funding is essential to the organisations and revenue based grants should be considered going forward.

8. Assets and access to expertise should also be considered as a resource alongside financial support packages.

Councillor A Mercer thanked members for taking time to consider the scope of work and welcomed the feedback from the Panel.

It was AGREED that the Panel:

a)    Noted the proposed programme of work to develop a Communities

Strategy and framework which set out our future relationships and working arrangements with the VCSE.

b)    Noted the extension of current strategic grants for the financial years

2022-23 and 2023-24.

The Panel received the Executive Forward Plan covering the period 1 March 2022 to 30 June 2022.

It was AGREED that the Executive Forward Plan of items be noted.

Members reviewed the forward list of items for future consideration by the panel.

It was AGREED that the work programme of the Health, Wellbeing & Vulnerable People EAP be noted.

The Executive Director Adults, Communities and Wellbeing provided updates on the Afghan Resettlement Programme and the Council’s response to the situation in Ukraine.

Members noted that two families had now been placed within North Northamptonshire and were settling in well. Language support had been accessed and steps were being taken to transfer recognised skills for employment.

The council had received no direct contact requesting support for the citizens in Ukraine. It was noted that the council worked with the Regional Migration Partnership and would be ready to act as needed.

It was AGREED that:

The updates on the following items be noted:

1. Afghan Resettlement Programme

2. North Northamptonshire Council’s response to Ukraine

The meeting closed at 11.42 am