Agenda item

The Board received and noted a presentation by Susan Jordan which explored Housing issues, including links to the Anti-Poverty Strategy, and how these impacted on the Board’s key areas of focus.  The Board also received information relating to the levels of homelessness and people seeking social housing in the Borough.

Members were advised that the HWB could help in the following ways:-

·                The HWB recognise Housing as an ‘anchor’ for good health and wellbeing;

·                That the areas of focus for the Board have an element of their plans devoted to housing or housing issues where appropriate; and

·                Prototype workshops for families with complex dependencies would begin in November and information and insight from these workshops was to be fed back into the partnership – the HWB should seek and receive this information early in 2017.

During discussion on the connection between housing and health and wellbeing and the links to anti-poverty work, Members raised the following points:-

·                Jacqueline Wilson commented on the relationship between the quality of homes and the health of children and highlighted the need for more detailed mapping and gathering of data intelligence on the quality of private sector housing, such as homes owned by private landlords and families on low incomes, as less was known about the standards of these homes compared to that of the social housing stock.  She added there had been proposals to look at undertaking a whole housing stock survey.

·                The Chair, Councillor Pat Knight, advised that Doncaster Council’s Energy Team carried out valuable work in attending community events and providing general advice to residents on how to save energy and improve the energy efficiency of their homes, promoting heating and assisting with the treatment of mould and damp in homes.  She added that the Fire Service through its home safety visits referred relevant cases, such as cold homes with damp/mould problems, to the Energy Team.

·                Jackie Pederson stressed that social isolation was a significant contributory factor that needed addressing.  She also highlighted the importance of signposting people to the appropriate services.

·                Susan Jordan explained that SLHD were currently looking at establishing a home improvement agency to deal with small repairs in homes to help mitigate any risks of trips and falls from potential hazards, and it was hoped that funding could be obtained to help in setting this up.

Following the presentation, the Board discussed various issues that had been highlighted, including:-

·                The need to focus on improving the performance figures in respect of the percentage of care leavers in suitable accommodation.  Jackie Wilson informed the Board that to mark last week’s National Care Leavers’ Week, Andy Hood, Head of Service for Targeted Youth Support at Doncaster Children’s Services Trust, had spent the week living on a care leaver’s budget to help highlight the achievements and difficulties that care leavers experience as they move into adulthood and living their lives independently.  Andy had written a blog describing his experiences, and Jackie offered to arrange for this to be circulated to Board Members for their information.  John Harris, Independent Chair of the Doncaster Safeguarding Children Board (DSCB) advised that whilst the Corporate Parenting Board was the core body in respect of care leavers, the DSCB would be receiving an assurance report next year on care leavers and issues such as their accommodation needs.

·                The challenges posed by the proposals to encourage more people with learning difficulties to live independently or with their families rather than staying in NHS accommodation.

·                Ways of addressing the issue of hardship in schools, and the need to encourage some schools to relax their uniform requirements which in some cases were placing an unreasonable financial burden on families with low incomes.

It was then

RESOLVED to receive and note the presentation on Housing and the Anti-Poverty Strategy.