Agenda and minutes

To approve as a correct record and sign the Minutes of the meeting held on 1 March 2016.

The Minutes (copies of which had been circulated) of the meeting held on 1 March 2016 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 interests were declared:-

Personal Interests

There were no call-ins to consider.

To consider a report of the Chief Executive of Stockport NHS Foundation Trust.

The report will be a draft of the 2015/16 Quality Account for the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, which sets out the performance of the Trust against a range of priorities.

The Scrutiny Committee will be invited to consider the report and provide feedback.

Contact: Judith Morris, Director of Nursing and Midwifery, 0161 419 5014

Judith Morris, the Director of Nursing & Midwifery, Stockport NHS Foundation Trust attended the meeting and submitted a copy of the Trust’s 2015/16 Quality Account (copies of which were circulated) as required by the NHS Regulator, Monitor. The report gave an overview of performance in the past year in relation to quality achievements and improvements in patient care and experience.

The following comments were made/ issues raised:-

·         Clarification was sought on the reasons for CQUIN performance being red. In response it was stated that these measures were mandatory requirements for the Trust and that it took time to ensure process and monitoring were in place.

·         In relation to the staff survey results and levels of harassment, it was commented that while these were not as high as national levels, the Trust had plans in place to address and reduce harassment.

·         Councillors discussed the benefits for dementia patients of playing music on wards. It was suggested that while this was not always appropriate for every ward, where tried this had shown to have significant therapeutic value. Councillors also commended the work of Florence Bawak, the Trust’s Dementia Matron.

The Director of Public Health paid tribute to the staff at the Trust for their work in embedding Public Health standards in their own activity. This work had taken place during this year but would be reflected in the 2016/17 Trust Quality Accounts.

RESOLVED – (1) That the Draft Stockport NHS Foundation Trust Quality Account 2015/16 be noted and welcomed.

(2) That the Chair be authorised to provide a formal response to the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust Quality Account 2015/16.

To consider a report of the Chief Executive.

This report provides details of the proposed Greater Manchester Low Emission Strategy and Air Quality Action Plan consultation.

The Scrutiny Committee will be invited to comment on the report.

Officer contact: Sue Stevenson, 0161-474-4351, sue.stevenson@stockport.gov.uk  

A representative of the Corporate Director for Place Management & Regeneration submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) providing an overview of the draft Greater Manchester Low Emission Strategy and Air Quality Action Plan which were currently subject to consultation, and appended to the report. The report also identified the implications of the Strategy and Action Plan for Stockport.

The following comments were made/ issues raised:-

·         Members discussed the feasibility of introducing low emissions zones, similar to those in operation in London. It was clarified that the draft Strategy referenced the possibility of such an initiative, it was likely to be for Manchester City Centre and would need to be enforceable. The likely consequences would be to increase emissions and decrease air quality  in the surrounding districts. Members expressed the view that as a Council, Stockport should consider how it might address those areas where air quality monitoring indicated it was poor, including the possibility of its own low emissions zones.

·         It was suggested that addressing air quality had been a struggle for all local authorities for a number of years, partly because there were limited levers available. Members discussed the possibility of bus regulation as a means to influence the quality of the bus fleets, as had happened with the quality bus corridors. These hybrid vehicles used on these routes reduced emissions from idling engines.

·         HGV and freight traffic was a particular issue for Stockport, as these were a contribution to the poor air quality along the most congested routes.

RESOLVED – (1) That the report be noted.

(2) That the comments of the Scrutiny Committee be considered as part of the Executive’s response to the Greater Manchester Low Emission Strategy and Air Quality Action Plan consultation.

(3) That the Democratic Services Manager, in consultation with the Chair, be requested to submit a response to the Greater Manchester Low Emission Strategy and Air Quality Action Plan on behalf of the Scrutiny Committee to reflect the views expressed at this meeting and previous discussions about air quality in Stockport.

To consider a report of the Chief Executive.

The Director of Public Health has published his 22nd Public Health Annual Report and has invited the Executive to provide a response to his recommendations. Stockport Homes have provided a separate response. The full 22nd Public Health Annual Report is available on the Council website.

The Scrutiny Committee is invited to comment on the response and recommend that the Executive adopt them.

Officer contact: Karen Kime, 0161 474 3574, karen.kime@stockport.gov.uk

A representative of the Deputy Chief Executive submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) setting out the proposed response of the Executive to the recommendations contained in the 22^nd Annual Report of the Director of Public Health.

The Executive Councillor (Independence & Wellbeing) (Councillor John Pantall) attended the meeting to answer questions from the Scrutiny Committee. The Executive Councillor thanked his executive colleagues and officers for their work in preparing the response.

The Director of Public Health thanked those involved for the preparation of the response, but highlighted concerns in following areas:-

·         Recommendation 5 – it was suggested that a possible Health Impact Assessment should be seen as separate to the Equality Impact Assessment.

·         Recommendations 28 and 29 – the response was welcomed but further contributions from the Place Directorate were diesirable.

The Director also thanked Stockport Homes for their response.

Councillors discussed the important role of public sector organisations as large employers in mental health, and the need to promote staff’s wellbeing. It was reported that the CCG had recently agreed to increase its mental health spend by 8%.

Councillors also discussed the value of third sector organisations and their contribution to supporting people with long term physical and mental health conditions.

RESOLVED – That the report be noted.

To consider a report of the Director of Public Health.

Officer contact: Donna Sager, 0161 474 3928, donna.sager@stockport.gov.uk

The Deputy Director of Public Health submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) inviting the Scrutiny Committee to consider a draft Business Case for the restructuring of the Public Health service as part of the strategic implementation of the Stockport Together Prevention and Empowerment programme.

The Executive Councillor (Independence & Wellbeing) (Councillor John Pantall) attended the meeting to answer questions about the proposals.

The following comments were made/ issues raised:-

·         There was limited scope for achieving savings within the public health budget due to contractual limitations, nevertheless future contract negotiations would be vital to ensure that these would be flexible enough to meet future needs. The role of Greater Manchester or sub-city region clustering would also become more important.

·         Councillors discussed the importance of Stockport Together and public health contributions to this work. It was emphasised that Stockport Together was a process to reform services, and was not about passing on costs. All the organisations involved would need to consider any wider resource issues and how these might be addressed.

·         Consideration might need to be given to current contracts with Foundation Trust and their management overheads.

RESOLVED – That the report be noted and an update be provided to the Scrutiny Committee upon conclusion of the consultation.

This item has been placed on the agenda at the request of the Chair.

The report provides an update on the development of a Greater Manchester Mental Health Strategy, and was considered by the Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Devolution Strategic Partnership Board on 26 February 2016.

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

A representative of the Democratic Services Manager reported that this item had been placed on the agenda at the request of the Chair.

The Chair reported that the Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Devolution Strategic Partnership Board had recently approved a Greater Manchester Mental Health Strategy (copies of which had been circulated), and highlighted the seven priority initiatives set out in paragraph 3.5 of the report. He further suggested that the Scrutiny Committee might wish to consider aligning its activity in 2016/17 to this work.

RESOLVED – (1) That the report be noted.

(2) That the Democratic Services Manager, in consultation with the Chair, be requested to give consideration to aligning the Scrutiny Committee’s future work programme with the seven priority initiative areas identified in the Greater Manchester Mental Health Strategy.

To consider a report of the Scrutiny Review Panel – Dementia Support

This will be the draft final report following the conclusion of the Scrutiny Review into support provided to carers of people with dementia.

The Scrutiny Committee will be asked to endorse and adopt the report for submission to the Executive and to delegate the making of any further minor changes to the Democratic Services Manager in consultation with the Chair and Vice-Chair.

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

A representative of the Democratic Services Manager reported on the tentative outcomes agreed by the Scrutiny Review Panel into support for carers of those with dementia, and invited feedback from the Scrutiny Committee on the draft recommendations.

RESOLVED – That the Democratic Services Manager, in consultation with the Chair and the Scrutiny Review Panel Lead Councillor, be requested to finalise the Final Report of the Review into support for carers of those with Dementia for submission to the Executive.

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) inviting the setting out planned agenda items for the Scrutiny Committee’s next meeting and any relevant Forward Plan items.

The Chair thanked councillors and officers for their contributions and support during the 2015/16 municipal year. Committee members also thanked the Chair for his good stewardship of the Committee during the year.

RESOLVED – (1) That the report be noted.

(2) That the Democratic Services Manager be requested to include the following items on the agenda for the next meeting on 25 May 2016:-

·         CCG Operational and Financial Plan

·         Stockport NHS Foundation Trust – update on ED Waiting Times and organisational arrangements