Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Georgia Gould and Marcus Boyland, Robert Vincent, Keith Morgan, Foyezur Miah, Sanjay Ganvir, Dr Dee Hora and Vanessa Odlin.

Yogendra Parmer attended as a substitute for Sanjay Ganvir and Sarah Hulme attended as a substitute for Vanessa Odlin.

No declarations were made.

Broadcast of the meeting

The Chair to announce the following: ‘In addition to the rights by law that the public and press have to record this meeting, I would like to remind everyone that this meeting is being broadcast live by the Council to the Internet and can be viewed on our website for twelve months after the meeting. After that time, webcasts are archived and can be made available upon request.

If you are seated in the Chamber, you are deemed to be consenting to having your contributions recorded and broadcast, including video when switched on, and to the use of those sound recordings and images for webcasting and/or training purposes.’

Any other announcements

Broadcast of the meeting

The Chair to announce the following: ‘In addition to the rights by law that the public and press have to record this meeting, I would like to remind everyone that this meeting is being broadcast live by the Council to the Internet and can be viewed on our website for twelve months after the meeting. After that time, webcasts are archived and can be made available upon request.

If you are seated in the Chamber, you are deemed to be consenting to having your contributions recorded and broadcast, including video when switched on, and to the use of those sound recordings and images for webcasting and/or training purposes.’

The Chair noted that this was the last meeting that Darren Summers would be attending. She thanked him for his work with the Board.

Requests to speak at the Board meeting on a matter within its terms of reference must be made in writing to the clerk named on the front of this agenda by 5pm two working days before the meeting.

There were no deputations.

To consider the minutes of the meeting held on 20 December 2023.

RESOLVED –

THAT the minutes of the meeting held on 20 September 2023 be agreed.

There was no urgent business.

Report of the Director of Public Health.

This report provides an update on Measles with a focus on MMR vaccination. It summarises the National and London epidemiology of measles, information about MMR vaccine coverage in Camden and the ICS approach to improving access, communications and engagement using a population health approach.

Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Public Health. In their introduction of the report, the Director of Public Health gave updated national figures of lab confirmed measles cases. The Deputy Director of Vaccination also introduced the report.

In their discussion of the report the Board made the following comments:

There had been a series of barriers for bringing community pharmacies into the work around childhood immunisations, however the new national strategy should allow for more community sites to support with some vaccines. It was important that community site offers were embedded within the model of delivery, to provide residents with a diversity of choice of where to get vaccines.

Part of the strategic approach to would be working with communities and coproducing communications to provide information through trusted channels for traditionally hard to reach communities.

It had been difficult to pull out data around the immunisation status of older school-age children due to whether information would be at a school of health setting and questions around Gillick competence.

RESOLVED –

THAT the report be noted.

Report of the Director and Project Lead of Healthwatch Camden.

Healthwatch Camden (HWC) have produced a series of 3 young people’s reports which provide an up-to-date snapshot of mental health, sexual health and vaping in Camden, including the services that support the prevention or mitigation of related issues.

Healthwatch Camden coproduced their research and findings through a series of focus groups and 150+ surveys with three popular Camden youth groups.

The reports include personal experiences of each area of concern and lived experiences within services that support young people’s health and wellbeing. The reports are summarised with a set of recommendations which HWC would like the board to consider for endorsement and action.

Consideration was given to the report of the Director and the Project Lead of Healthwatch Camden.

After an introduction by the Director and Project Lead, the Board discussed the report:

The Board noted that they way in which young people access information had changed. This would be an important factor when engaging with them around topics such as sexual health, where there had been a significant increase in sexually transmitted diseases in young people.

In response to a question around how to provide clarity of information for young people around vaping, the Project Lead said that young people identified information for how to stop vaping was not easily accessible for them.

Referrals into mental health services were not increasing in Camden, this may be a good thing as there were a broad range of services that were being delivered. However, this may indicate that knowledge of how to navigate the mental health system was creating a barrier for young people to access services. Members identified a possible need for targeted engagement around how to navigate systems.

The Board noted the increase in young people presenting with neurodevelopmental disorders that did not fall in the intellectual disability bracket. More work around this would be important, especially when considering issues with school attendance and vulnerability to getting involved with crime.

Members asked about the feedback from young people that they felt the mental health offer was a one size fits all approach and that it seemed in contrast with the broad range of support services available. The Director of Healthwatch Camden said, broadly, the feedback was related to a perceived lack of understanding around issues of identity, gender, cultural and age differences. The Director noted that portions of the population were having their needs met but asked for a focus on engagement with young people and helping them navigate the system.

The Chair asked that an overview of how services are engaging with young people be brought back to the Board.

Action by: Senior Policy and Projects Officer

RESOLVED –

THAT the report be noted.

Report of the Director of Integration for Camden, North Central London Integrated Care Board.

This paper provides an overview of progress of the North Camden Asthma Pilot which is an innovative multi-agency proposal concerning asthma pathways. An opportunity to showcase collaboration and challenge the partnership on how learning could be adopted elsewhere to deliver effective care.

The Start Well Programme has initiated a series of pilot Community Children Group Asthma Consultations in North Camden aimed at enhancing asthma care for high-risk patients with poorly controlled asthma. This pilot builds upon the current Long-Term Condition Locally Commissioned Service [1] (LTC LCS) model of care and seeks to involve the wider community in providing holistic, personalised care. This innovative pilot aligns with principles of neighbourhood working, emphasising collaboration and partnership between primary and secondary care, local authority, community organisations and patients.

This proactive delivery of care strategy seeks to enhance asthma management among high-risk groups, enhance accessibility to specialist care, and reduce asthma-related hospital visits, ultimately enhancing health outcomes for children and young people (CYP) with asthma.

Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Integration for Camden, North Central London Integrated Care Board. The report was introduced by the Public Health Consultant and the Integrated Care Board Start Well Clinical Lead for Camden.

In their discussion of the report, the Board asked for an update report to be brought back.

Action by: Senior Policy and Projects Officer

RESOLVED –

THAT the report be noted.

Report of the Director of Public Health.

This paper considers the importance of child health equity for our ‘Ready and Healthy for School’ strategic priority. It provides updates on existing programmes of work which address important aspects of child health equity: the whole-schools approach to food, its application to Family Hubs and other settings, and the wider role of equity and inclusion within Family Hub settings. This paper then introduces Camden’s child health equity strategic programme and invites partners to consider their role within this.

Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Public Health. The Report was introduced by the Assistant Director for Public Health, the Head of Early Years and the Public Health Consultant.

Before the Board discussed the report, the Chair reiterated the discussion questions found in the report and that it would be good for partners to take these questions away to think about how their individual organisations could support the work. She suggested a visit be organised for partners to attend a Family Hub.

In their discussion of the report the Board made the following comments:

·       Perinatal and parental mental health services and substance misuse services would be important in Family Hubs.

·       A focus would be needed to engage with people who may need services but were not accessing them.

·       Through a health equality lens, how could partners share data to identify families in need of services?

·       As the project had only one more year of funding confirmed, it would be valuable to think about the future of the project and what happens next.

·       What does reducing inequalities in health and wellbeing look like in Camden?

RESOLVED –

THAT the report be noted.

Report of the Director of Public Health.

The Health and Wellbeing Board’s work programme is developed by Board members and partners, with oversight from the Chair of the Board and support from Camden strategy officers. The future programme is intended to be a working document and will be reviewed and agreed by the Board at every meeting. The Board is asked to note the draft programme and suggest items for inclusion at future meetings.

Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Public Health.

RESOLVED –

THAT the report be noted.

To note the dates of meetings in the 2024/ 2025 municipal year:

·       10 July 2024

·       18 September 2024

·       18 December 2024

·       13 March 2025

The dates of future meetings were noted.

There was no such business.