Agenda item

The Chair reported prior to the meeting, Members of the Board had been asked to consider items of importance for discussion and information that they would bring to the meeting in terms of where they were currently with their key priorities and action points. This would raise of awareness of all the work being done by all the different partner agencies and highlight any areas for further discussion.

Members were invited one by one, to outline to the rest of the Board, what issues were pertinent in their areas at the current time and what challenges had arisen as a result of Covid-19. The following points were raised:-

·         Backlog of services in medical settings as well as Council services with many procedures delayed or cancelled and services suspended which were now moving towards a greater sense of normality;

·         All services within the hospital as of now, were now back up and running although some had been modified greatly with fewer patients seen as a result of reduced capacities, extra cleaning and the need for PPE.

·         The changes to ways of working had been very positive with so much more processes being done digitally

·         All services commented that they were preparing for what could be a very tough winter ahead and it was important that the workforce was resilient ad well rested and prepared;

·         It was important that staff were well supported throughout the pandemic, in terms of mental, emotional and physical well-being and it was more important than ever that they were supported moving forward;

·         Questions and discussions were ongoing as to how to support more vulnerable staff;

·         Flexible working would be a much bigger part of the working world moving forward and it was good to see people had adapted and embraced new ways of working;

·         Mental Health issues, continued across all agencies, to be a huge area of concern and supporting that moving forward would be a huge challenge;

·         In terms of the third sector, concern was voiced for BAME community and the support needed there, and it was very difficult at times to provide the support that many of the community and voluntary groups needed in terms of staffing and rising costs in a very uncertain time when more support was needed than ever;

·         All partners across the emergency services were working well and providing support across the board where needed to ensure the processes and procedures were as seamless as possible;

·         In terms of children and families, it was noted that this had increased demand, with a lot of referrals received throughout, but the Trust was working closely with schools and were reacting well to all situations that were presented in terms of different ways of working;

·         With regard to ST Leger Homes, Members heard that to a large degree it had continued to be ‘Business as Usual’ with maintenance and repairs continuing, and additionally had provided a lot of support to the community hub in the early days of the pandemic.

·         One key point that was particularly positive to note, was that with regard to the Homeless in Doncaster and Members were informed that St Leger Homes had worked to ensure that they had managed to offer a bed to every rough sleeper at the start of lockdown;

All partners reported positives as well as ongoing challenges, and it had been a steep learning curve for all, with the end by no means in sight but it was positive to see how all services had pulled together for the good of the Borough. Elected Members thanked other board members for their efforts throughout the pandemic, and there was the consensus amongst them that during these unprecedented times, people had worked exceptionally hard, going above and beyond, pulling together to work through this. A foundation was now in place to deal with this moving forward and it was hoped that this would be beneficial in the continued efforts against Covid-19.

Members also commented that they had been overwhelmed by the support of the public during this time, with time volunteered, donations made and support given and thanks was given for the heartfelt response by everyone.

                        RESOLVED that the comments made be noted.