Agenda and minutes

To approve as a correct record and sign the Minutes of the meeting held on 25 July 2017.

The Minutes (copies of which had been circulated) of the meeting held on 25 July 2017 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

Councillors and officers were invited to declare any interests they had in any of the items on the agenda for the meeting.

The following interest was declared:-

Personal Interest

There were no call-ins to consider.

To consider a report of the Corporate Director for People.

The purpose of this report is to provide an update to the Adult Social Care and Health Scrutiny Committee on the support offered to current and former members of the armed forces, reservists and their families as part of our commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant.

The Scrutiny Committee is asked to note the contents of this report and the future plans to support the armed forces community in Stockport.

Officer contact: Sarah Statham, 0161-474-4308, sarah.statham@stockport.gov.uk

Representatives of the Corporate Director for People submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) updating the Scrutiny Committee on the support offered by the Council, and the People Directorate in particular, to current and former members of the armed forces, reservists and their families as part of the Council’s commitments through the Armed Forces Covenant.

The Cabinet Members for Adult Social Care and for Health attended the meeting to respond to questions.

Working with health service partners and improving the capture of data on current and former service persons were highlighted.

The following comments were made/ issues raised:-

·         Concerns were expressed about whether the Council’s Digital by Design programme would be addressing challenges with data sharing. In response it was stated the Council was procuring a new case management system for adult services and that this process would address data sharing and information governance. It was also stressed that irrespective of these issues there remained the need to educate staff on the importance of capturing data appropriately.

·         The challenges with current and former service people was not unique to Stockport and highlighted the importance of capturing data for inclusion in the JSNA so that commissioning decisions were taken in full cognisance of these specific needs.

·         The range of age groups and needs of people in this cohort was emphasised.

·         Further information on support and work with the Ministry of Defence was sought.

RESOLVED – (1) That the report be noted and welcomed.

(2) That the Corporate Director for People be requested to provide further information on services provided in conjunction with the Ministry of Defence.

To consider a report of the Corporate Director for People.

The report sets out proposals for the utilisation of the Improved Better Care Fund for comment by the Scrutiny Committee prior to consideration by the Health & Wellbeing Board.

Officer contact: Sally Wilson, 0161-218-1648, sally.wilson@stockport.gov.uk

A representative of the Corporate Director for People submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) outlining proposals for the use of the improved Better Care Fund (iBCF). The report provided details of the grant, the criteria being used locally to assess investment schemes, the context in which those decisions were being made and the proposed financial envelope to be invested in specified areas.  The plans for iBCF would be submitted for approval by the Health and Wellbeing Board on 27 September 2017.

The Chair highlighted the complexity and challenge of work in this area and thanked officers for their efforts.

The following comments were made/ issues raised:-

·         The challenge of responding to the needs of people with chaotic lifestyles was highlighted and the inappropriateness for many of being placed up in adult social care facilities. In response it was stated that there was a need to quantify the demands in Stockport as it may be more cost effective to commission these types of services on a Greater Manchester footprint. In many cases people were presenting to social care who might not otherwise have done previously as a consequence of ‘squeezing’ of other service areas, so this pressure might not represent an increase in numbers but rather a shift in demand.

·         It was confirmed that Stockport Clinical Commissioning Group were supportive of these proposals.

·         Concerns were expressed that the funding represented only a small part of the resource need for Stockport and was part of a much more significant national problem with adult social care funding.

·         The investment in quality improvement was welcomed, particular in relation to staff whose contribution often went unrecognised.

·         In relation to staff training proposals, it was queried whether additional investment would lead to increased staff pay and cost. In response it was stated that a strategy would need to be developed to address skills gaps and retention challenges. Caution was needed about using non-recurrent or time limited resources to fund pay increases as these would not be sustainable. The resources would allow for the testing of new approaches to staffing and training. Stockport Together also had a workforce development strategy that would allow for resources to be deployed more effectively to meet staffing challenges.

·         Clarification was sought on the impact of Greater Manchester work on skills and training provision, such as the Area Based Review. In response it was stated that this would form a part of the Greater Manchester Strategy, but a key element was to stress the value and contribution of staff and recognise good quality service in the care sector. It was further commented that initiatives such as the Daisy Awards had been used as a means to improve standards.

·         Councillors discussed the challenges facing the workforce and the downward pressure on wages and terms and conditions. Comment was made that despite these challenges there were very dedicated and hardworking carers in the profession, but nevertheless there were difficulties in retaining and recruiting staff.

RESOLVED – That the report be noted.

To consider a report of the Democratic Services Manager.                                                          

The report sets out planned agenda items for the Scrutiny Committee’s next meeting and Forward Plan items that fall within the remit of the Scrutiny Committee.

The Scrutiny Committee is invited to consider the information in the report and put forward any agenda items for future meetings of the Committee.

Officer contact: Jonathan Vali, 0161 474 3201, jonathan.vali@stockport.gov.uk

A representative of the Democratic Services Manager submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) setting out planned agenda items for the Scrutiny Committee’s next meeting and any relevant Forward Plan items.

The Scrutiny Committee was invited to nominate members to form part of the Scrutiny Review Panel ‘Whole System Approach to Healthy Weight’.

RESOLVED – (1) That the report be noted.

(2) That Councillors John Wright (Lead Member), Laura Booth, Annette Finnie, Susan Ingham and John Taylor be appointed to the Scrutiny Review Panel ‘Whole System Approach to Healthy Weight’.