Agenda item

The Board considered a report which addressed and updated the Members on the developments of supporting the whole person through an integrated locality approach across the system in Croydon. The locality approaches would deliver the priorities of the Health and Wellbeing Strategy, in particular priority eight: “The right people in the right place at the right time”.

The Director of Alliance Programme, Rachel Soni, introduced the report and explained that in Croydon the approach to health and wellbeing was rapidly evolving and an important part of that was to ensure that the different areas within the borough were provided with what was needed to maintain healthy and productive life. The aim was that when Croydon residents sought help they should be able to find the assistance they need locally with all services tailored to local needs.

The report presented included perspectives and updates on the locality approach for:

·       Council’s Operating Model

·       Health and Care Locality Development – Integrated Community Networks + (ICN+)

·       Locality approach for the Children and Young People agenda

·       Shift to strengths based approaches, such as Community Led Support

·       The locality approach and the voluntary and community sector experience

·       A Healthwatch Croydon perspective on what locality working means to the public

It was noted that three particular areas had been selected to pilot the localities work, and these were: Thornton Heath, New Addington and South Croydon. This selection was based on a number of factors including geographical spread, inequality and the existing or planned activity taking place in these areas.

The Croydon Voluntary Action representative, Steve Phaure, explained that the report was a council operating model and he suggested that further work engaging the community alongside the council would be beneficial, particularly focusing on preventative work. He added that there were a lot of assets in the borough which needed to be utilised.

The Healthwatch representative, Gordon Kay, did a presentation to the Board regarding the two successive two-hour public events held in Thornton Heath; these were to gain insight into how the new ICN+ model of services would be received by local residents. He highlighted that the following areas were focused on:

·       Understanding the model

·       Widening access

·       Communication

·       Building community ownership and representation

The Director of Public Health, Rachel Flowers, explained that the authority had services that could be provided to prevent residents relying on the NHS. The communication within the services needed to be developed but she noted that this was the first time in her career she has seen all areas starting to work together, which was positive.

The Chair noted that the Board needed to be conscious of how they could measure success following the introduction of the localities work.

Councillor Hopley noted that there was cross-party support of the localities work. She expressed concern for the communications around the work to the public as a lot of residents were unaware of the ongoing work and how they could get involved. She requested quantitative data from officers, including; how many residents in the borough have dementia and how many residents were currently receiving social care. The Chair agreed with Councillor Hopley and echoed her comments regarding the data and explained that the Board Members needed this from the outset to monitor the impact.

Councillor Bird explained that it was positive to hear feedback that the localities approach was proving to be successful; however, the Board needed to have borough-wide data to measure success. The Vice-Chair noted that Croydon Alliance data was available and further data was being collected. The Director of Public Health added that qualitative data needed to be collected and for officers to not just focus on quantitative.

Councillor Hall stated that it was important to ensure all residents from across the borough benefited by receiving the help and support needed. He noted that it was positive to have package support for residents and hoped that the communities would be strengthened through the work. It was added that the second Community Food Stop was to be introduced to Thornton Heath following the successful pilot scheme.

In response to the queries raised by Councillor Bird the Chair explained that the scheme was to be initially introduced to the areas with greatest need within the borough. The Director of Public Health added that evidence showed that those with a lesser income were often more at need but agreed that there was deprivation in all wards within the borough.

Councillor Hopley stated that there were a lot of residents unknown to the authority who could benefit from extra support, particularly in the south of the borough; these residents were often isolated as they were not part of a close community. It was noted that developing a tailored approach was important as different wards had different needs.

Councillor Flemming advised officers to collaborate with developing community groups within the wards to ensure the work was being promoted and to also relieve the potential stigma.

The Vice-Chair noted that social isolation affected residents across the whole borough and many people did not have access to the services needed; he was hopeful that the new localities approach would improve this greatly. From his experience as a GP, he noted that the figures regarding appointments and referrals were improving and patients had explained that they were feeling happier and more supported within the community. He added, though, that communication and engagement around the ongoing work did need to be improved.

Councillor Campbell noted that officers should collaborate with local schools, places of worship and all locations which provided community services.

The Director of Alliance Programme responded to the queries raised by the Board and explained that a communication plan would be introduced and this would focus on how reports were written particularly from the service user’s perspective. She also noted that the data collected would be presented to a future Health & Wellbeing Board.

RESOLVED – That the Health & Wellbeing Board:

1)    Commented on the latest position of the localities approach, which was being developed across Croydon.

2)    Noted the Healthwatch recommendations in 8.1 and discussed next steps for addressing them.