Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber, Civic Office, Waterdale, Doncaster DN1 3BU. View directions

Items
No. Item

25.

Apologies for Absence

26.

Declarations of Interest, if any

Minutes:

Councillor Mark Houlbrook declared that he was employed by the Prison Service.

27.

Minutes of the Health and Adult Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Panel held on 29th November 2018 pdf icon PDF 121 KB

Minutes:

That the minutes be approved as a correct record.

28.

Public Statements

[A period not exceeding 20 minutes for

Statements from up to 5 members of the public on

matters within the Panel’s remit, proposing action(s)

which may be considered or contribute towards the

future development of the Panel’s work programme].

 

Minutes:

Doug Wright a resident from Doncaster referred to a question he had asked at a Full Council meeting relating to the Joint Commissioning Management Board (JCMB).  He referred to the Governance of regional NHS meetings that allowed for attendance and questions by Members of the Public and was disappointed that the JCMB did not allow this.  He stressed the importance of the areas considered relating to identification and development of joint commissioning arrangements between NHS Doncaster, Doncaster Clinical Commissioning Group and the Local Authority.

 

He was of the opinion that Members of the public should be invited as observers and that they be allowed to take part in debates on health issues in future.  He expressed his concern that members of the public were unaware what was happening and that the NHS was deteriorating due to ongoing privatisation.

 

He stated that the public being in attendance at such meetings was an important issue and asked Scrutiny to give consideration to it bearing in mind its health scrutiny responsibilities.

 

He concluded by adding that, he had recently learned that Doncaster now had an Integrated Care Service Board which he felt would be more crucial than the JCMB.

 

29.

Doncaster Safeguarding Adults Annual Report 2017-18 pdf icon PDF 178 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

John Woodhouse, Chair of the Adult Safeguarding Board presented his 2017/18 Annual Report, detailing highlights and progress within the service provided.  He outlined that there was now full engagement from all partners and with regard to weaknesses it was stressed that lessons continued to be learned.

 

The Panel was pleased to note that the Safeguarding Board had been working with the community based Doncaster Keeping Safe Forum, helping it to grow in capacity and membership with the primary aim of getting the message out in Doncaster that abuse will not be tolerated.

 

Monitoring achievements and outcomes – in response to challenge from Members, it was stressed that this was an example of reporting that does not show the exact position.  For example, a persons outcomes could be met and improved but when asked if they felt safe, they did not, therefore this has been drawn to the attention of supporting services to address.

 

It was noted that comparative data with other authorities was difficult to report due to the different systems in operation however, this was an issue that Safeguarding Board chairs nationally were addressing.

 

Underspend – it was explained to the Panel that the underspend related to a vacancy in the unit, the role of which was being reviewed and developed.  It was noted that there was also additional spending required on the number of safeguarding reviews undertaken in the forthcoming year.

 

Future reporting mechanisms – It was recognised that the Safeguarding Board seeks to improve engagement with the wider community and that it was learning lessons about new communication mechanisms used by young people, through the Children’s Safeguarding Board. 

 

Members were delighted with the informative written report but highlighted that they were aware of reports being developed in the form of a video.  The Panel was of the opinion that this could reach more people, particularly through modern technology avenues. 

 

Criminal networks – Bearing in mind the complexities with issues such as county lines and cuckooing where vulnerable adults could be targeted, it was noted that it was the role of the Safeguarding Board to ensure that all agencies worked together ensuring all residents were safe.  Next years Annual Report would detail work being undertaken by the Adults and Children and Young People Safeguarding Boards on this theme.

 

With regard to human trafficking there was confidence that partners would be able to respond, if presented with the issue. 

 

The Chair took the opportunity to remind the Panel that the Crime and Disorder Committee would be meeting on 13th February, at 10am when Scrutiny would address a number of Community Safety priorities.

 

Partnership Training – It was confirmed that the Adult Safeguarding Board did not undertake training for partners/Board Members, as there was an expectation that they bring with them a level of safeguarding expertise and knowledge, and its role was to ensure that the different sectors understood each organisations/partners role.  For Example, the contribution from South Yorkshire Police was essential which enabled all partners to understand, as  ...  view the full minutes text for item 29.

30.

Doncaster Delivery of the National Armed Forces Community Covenant 2019 pdf icon PDF 334 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Panel gave consideration to the Doncaster delivery of the National Armed Forces Community Covenant 2019.  The Armed Forces and Veterans Steering Group have successfully progressed a range of work across key theme areas to support removal of disadvantage and identification of ex-service personnel, their families and carers, including suicide prevention and mental health.

 

Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) – Members highlighted that the MOD (Ministry of Defence) would be making a change to its administration process and releasing data that may assist when supporting veterans.  It was therefore recommended that the JSNA 2015 required updating to support emerging health requirements for veterans.

 

Doctors identifying veterans – The Panel raised concern that there was no consistency of GP surgeries automatically registering ex-service personnel, to help identify whether their health needs required a specific support package.  Members received confirmation that in Doncaster GP practices had produced action plans to ensure they were actively identifying veterans and also that Doncaster and Bassetlaw Acute Trust were working towards achieving a veteran friendly accredited hospital.

 

It was noted that the NHS Trust was changing their systems to ensure it understood what it means when someone identifies themselves as a veteran and the Local Authority was working with partners, the CCG and GPs to promote this initiative.

 

Claiming War Pensions – It had been recognised that a number of veterans were not aware that they could claim, for example, a war pension.  It was noted that this issue was being addressed by the Department for Work and Pensions, through staff training and appropriate signposting.

 

Prisons – It was acknowledged that there were a number of veterans within the prison population and highlighted that there was a dedicated scheme called “Project NOVA” that supported veterans that had been arrested or at risk of arrest to assist with avoiding criminal behaviour.

 

RESOLVED: that consideration be given to a review of the JSNA being undertaken to reflect the needs of and understand how to better support veterans.

 

31.

H&ASC O&S Work Plan - January 2019 Update pdf icon PDF 102 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Further to discussions relating to the Young Carers Card scheme at the meeting held on 29th November, Members were informed that a recent letter from the Cabinet Member confirmed that the credit card style traffic light system was being developed and the livery had been designed by the Young Carers Group.  The Panel was reminded that different colours would be used for different feelings/issues, for example, the use of a red card could mean that a young carer did not wish to discuss any problems they were experiencing that particular day.  The scheme would be rolled out in the near future.

 

RESOLVED:  that the report be noted.