Agenda and minutes

Members are asked to declare any interests in the items under consideration and in doing so state:

(1) the type of interest concerned either a

(a)    personal interest

(b)    prejudicial interest

(c)     disclosable pecuniary interest (DPI)

and

(2) the nature of the interest concerned

If any member requires advice on declarations of interests, they are advised to contact the Head of Democratic Governance in advance of the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest on this occasion.

To agree the minutes of the last meeting held on 2 December 2021 as a true and correct record.

The minutes of the last meeting held on 2 December 2021 were agreed as a true and correct record subject to the inclusion of Councillor Gerard Walsh in the list of attendees.

To consider any applications from members of the public to speak at the meeting.

There were no requests from members of the public to speak on this occasion.

To consider the Executive and Cabinet Member decisions within the portfolios of the Cabinet Members taken since the last meeting of the Committee.

The Committee noted the Executive and Cabinet Member decisions taken since its previous meeting.

To provide a summary of the final report from the Blackpool Fulfilling Lives programme that ran in Blackpool between 2014 and 2021.

The Committee was advised that Mr Ian Treasure, former programme director of Blackpool Fulfilling Lives (BFL) was unable to attend the meeting. It was noted that any questions around the conclusion of the project would be taken at a future meeting when Mr Treasure was able to attend, however, Ms Judith Mills, Consultant in Public Health would answer any questions relating to how learning from the programme had been incorporated into Council services.

Ms Mills reported that the key elements of Fulfilling Lives that had been taken forward were the Lived Experience Team (LET), homeless healthcare services and developments in mental health services. She noted that the LET had been a real success of BFL and had subsequently been expanded and involved in the shaping of services. The LET had ensured that services were trauma informed and had taken the lead on developing strategies to engage with people with multiple disadvantages.

Members raised concerns regarding the expiry of data used in the evaluation and accounting for the spending during the programme. In response, Ms Mills advised that the national lottery had required clear oversight of outcomes and spending and that the BFL programme had provided evidence of success which had led the Government to fund ‘Changing Futures’, the next iteration of Fulfilling Lives.

In response to a question regarding the legacy and sustainability of practices, Ms Mills advised that partners were committed to finding sustainability and growth and had recognised the benefits to service users of the approaches developed through BFL. She highlighted Project ADDER as a continuation of service provision.

The Committee agreed that a special meeting would be held later in the year to which Mr Treasure would be invited in addition to representatives of the Lived Experience Team (LET). The meeting would allow Members to fully explore the issues raised and link together the recommendations of the drug related deaths scrutiny review to be considered later during this meeting with the ongoing work of the LET.

To provide an overview of the current work of Adult Services including the financial position of the service.

Ms Karen Smith, Director of Adult Services presented the Adult Services Update Report to the Committee and highlighted the continuing pressures on social care and health services.  She advised that the latest wave of Covid infection had impacted services in different ways to previously with increases in the numbers isolating having an impact on the workforce. She also highlighted the work of the Transfer of Care hub, the high levels of workforce vaccination and the financial position of the service.

The Committee queried whether there had been any issues with regards to patients and families seeking care by vaccinated staff. In response, Ms Smith advised that she had only seen one such request. She noted that prior to choosing a residential home, clients could identify the rate of vaccination of staff in each home and that all providers of residential care or care at home ensured that the correct Personal Protective Equipment was used in order to protect clients.

Members noted concerns regarding the increasing costs of gas and electricity and the impact of the increase on older residents. Ms Smith acknowledged the detrimental impact of the cold on frail people and noted the availability of winter warmth grants. She added that it was hoped that service providers would identify people who were struggling when entering a cold home so that help could be provided as appropriate.

The issues for young people in transitioning between children’s and adult mental health services were noted and Mrs Sharon Davis, Scrutiny Manager advised that the issue of mental health service provision for young people aged 18-25 years had been identified for further scrutiny through a briefing held on Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services and had been included within the workplan for the Children and Young People’s Scrutiny Committee.

Reference was made to delayed discharges from hospital and the report made by NHS colleagues in December 2021 and Members noted the resource put in place by Adult Services to facilitate hospital discharges. Ms Smith advised that the placement of social care staff in the hospital had been very successful and that daily meetings were held in order to spot trends and highlight issues. She added that the services in Blackpool worked also closely with colleagues from Lancashire County Council.

In response to a question, Members were advised that care homes had used the additional funding in many ways such as to support recruitment and retention, to increase staff pay or pay for additional hours. She noted that the Council received monthly returns from care homes and had the right to carry out a more detailed audit of spend if deemed necessary.

To provide an update on the development and implementation of an Initial Response Service (IRS) across Blackpool and the Fylde coast to support people in crisis as part of the community model. The aim of the service is to provide a responsive single point of access for urgent and routine requests for help, including signposting to relevant services. The intention is that by April 2022 each Locality / Integrated Care Partnership will have the IRS service in place.

Ms Joanna Stark, Director of Operations, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCFT) and Ms Louise Giles, Deputy Director of Transformation, LSCFT provided a presentation on the new Initial Response Service (IRS) to the Committee and highlighted how the proposals would transform care for patients. The aim of the service was to provide a single point of contact and access to mental health services.

The Committee welcomed the work undertaken to date and noted its considerable size. The complexities of the population of Blackpool were highlighted and it was queried how the service would ensure it could meet the needs of the residents. In response, Ms Giles advised that the service had been modelled on all calls to be received with capacity built in for unmet demand and the impact of covid. She advised that partners from across Blackpool had been involved in the development of the service in order to ensure that provision was reflective of need. It was reported that a soft launch to the service would take place in order to assess pathways, processes, systems and call handler etiquette. Intensive training would be held for all staff in order to create the right team ethos.

In relation to the single point of access in each of the four separate localities, Members queried how LSCFT could ensure that a consistent approach was taken across all services and that patients received an equality of service across the whole region. In response, Ms Giles noted that the voluntary sector in particular varied significantly in each locality and that it would be important for staff to have a good understanding of the different provision in the voluntary sector in order to refer patients to the most appropriate place should they not meet the criteria for the IRS. She added that that an asset map of provision was being developed and that the aim of the service was to meet the differing needs of the population in each locality.

In response to further questions, Ms Giles advised that significant funding had been received and a large proportion of that was being used to support the voluntary sector. The live data of the soft launch would be monitored closely for trends and transformation work would continue in order to address the level of demand. It was noted that any person in Blackpool would be eligible for crisis support from the service whether they were a resident or tourist.

In reference to the age range for the service, it was reported that it would be for all ages and that work was ongoing with Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services in order to develop appropriate links. All staff would be appropriately trained in responding to children and young people.

Members noted that there had already been a delay in launching the service in Blackpool and sought assurance that there would be no further delays. Ms Giles advised that some staff had already been recruited whilst others would transfer from existing service provision. There  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

As set out in the Drug Related Deaths Scrutiny Review action plan, an update on the recommendations of the review is now due. This report aims to summarise the ongoing work in relation to the recommendations.

The Committee considered the update provided on the recommendations of the Drug Related Deaths Scrutiny Review.

The Committee agreed to note the update and request that a further update on progress be provided to a special meeting to be set up in due course. The meeting would also consider the work of Adder and the Lived Experience Team.

To consider the final report of the scrutiny review of Supported Housing.

The Committee approved the Supported Housing Scrutiny Review Final Report for submission to the Executive.

To review the work of the Committee, the implementation of recommendations and note the update on the briefing on Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services.

The Committee considered its workplan and agreed to add in an item on North West Ambulance Service in October 2022.

Upon considering the table of Committee recommendations, Members noted that an action from November 2020 had not yet been completed, which was to receive information on a discharge trial in two wards at Blackpool Victoria Hospital and requested that Dr Jim Gardner be contacted again in order to try to expedite receipt of the information requested.

To note the date and time of the next meeting as Thursday, 31 March 2022 at 6.00pm.

The Committee agreed the date and time of the next meeting as Thursday 31 March 2022, commencing at 6pm.