Agenda and minutes

The Committee is asked to note the appointments to the Committee of Cllr Oxlade in place of Cllr Sudan, Cllr Pendleton in place of Cllr Flynn and to approve the co-opted membership of the Committee as set out below: -

To be confirmed (Adur District Council)

Cllr Peacock (Mid Sussex District Council)

Cllr Harman (Worthing Borough Council)

Cllr Bennett (Arun District Council)

To be confirmed (Horsham District Council)

Cllr Bangert (Chichester District Council)

Cllr McAleney (Crawley Borough Council)

N.B. The Healthwatch West Sussex representative, Ms Broadhill, is an ongoing appointment.

1.1        Resolved – that the Committee notes the appointment of  Cllr Chris Oxlade in place of Cllr Karen Sudan, Cllr Jacky Pendleton in place of Cllr Hilary Flynn and approves the co-opted membership of the Committee as set out below: -

·         To be confirmed (Adur District Council)

·         Cllr Jamie Bennett (Arun District Council)

·         Cllr Tracie Bangert (Chichester District Council)

·         Cllr Tom McAleney (Crawley Borough Council)

·         To be confirmed (Horsham District Council)

·         Cllr Adam Peacock (Mid Sussex District Council)

·         Cllr Karen Harman (Worthing Borough Council)

·         Ms Katrina Broadhill (Healthwatch West Sussex)

Members and officers must declare any pecuniary or personalinterest in any business on the agenda. They should also make declarations at any stage such an interest becomes apparent during the meeting. Consideration should be given to leaving the meeting if the nature of the interest warrants it.  If in doubt please contact Democratic Services before the meeting.

2.1        In accordance with the code of conduct, the following personal interests were declared: -

·         Cllr Turner in respect of item 7, Sussex Strategic Plan and West Sussex Joint Place-based Response to the NHS Long Term Plan as a locum pharmacist

The Committee is asked to agree the minutes of the meeting held on 11 March 2020 (cream paper).

3.1        Resolved – that the minutes of the meeting held on 11 March

2020 are approved as a correct record and are signed by the Chairman.

The Committee is asked to note the responses to recommendations made at the 11 March 2020 meeting from the Cabinet Member for Adults & Health on –

a)   Self-harm and West Sussex Suicide Prevention Strategy Priorities – to follow (the Interim Director of Public Health will provide a response to the Committee’s questions to include the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on self-harm and related services)

b)    West Sussex Joint Dementia Strategy 2020-23 - attached

4.1       Resolved – that the Committee notes the response to recommendations made at its 11 March 2020 meeting.

Extract fromthe ForwardPlan dated 26 August 2020 – attached.

Anextract fromanyForwardPlan publishedbetween the date of despatchof the agenda and the date of the meetingwill be tabled at the meeting.

The Committee is asked to consider whetheritwishes to enquireinto any of the forthcoming decisions withinits portfolio.

5.1      Resolved – that the Committee notes the Forward Plan of Key Decisions.

Report by West Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group.

The report outlines the Joint West Sussex Place-based Response to the NHS Long Term Plan by health and local government partners across Sussex.

6.1      The Committee considered a report by NHS West Sussex

Clinical Commissioning Group (copy appended to the signed minutes) which was introduced by Pennie Ford, Executive Managing Director (West Sussex) who told the Committee: -

·         The Plan sets out a strategic response to local and national expectations with a range of commitments on how health and social care will work together, including a change to pathways and a continuation of work begun in the last few years which will lead to improvements in the quality of providers and other areas

·         The Plan represents the collective response to increasing challenges and sets out the development of network models

·         Health & Care consultation events in 2018 helped inform the Plan as did the Population Health Check in 2019 – Our Health & Care, Our Future will also feed into the Plan

·         The Sussex Plan will be delivered through three place-based plans co-terminus with local authority areas

·         The focus had been be on prevention and addressing inequalities

·         The key areas of progress are; West Sussex becoming an Integrated Care System from April 2020 and the three West Sussex clinical commissioning groups merging into one

·         Although Covid-19 meant that formal planning for 2020 was suspended, the overall long-term priorities still stand with amended timetables and details – some, such as digital care, being implemented more quickly whereas non-urgent elective work had been paused

·         There was rethinking on how to tackle some priorities such as inequalities and the Big Health & Care Socially Distanced Conversations would help get people’s views on, and inform a joint delivery plan

·         Work was taking place on a joint delivery plan

6.2      Summary of responses to members comments and questions: -

·         A series of programmes were being run in acute, primary and mental health settings to strengthen local mental health services with recognition of demand built into restoration plans

·         The financial position was challenging with a £60m deficit and targets for 2020/21 were not yet known

·         The funding gap would need to be filled through the transformation programme, but not all in one year

·         The Covid-19 response was fully funded

·         Finance directors from partner organisations were working together to transform services to improve quality and make savings

·         There had been mixed feedback regarding digital consulting in primary care which would be one of the topics for the Big Health & Care Socially Distanced Conversations – some face to face examinations would always be necessary

·         A workstream funded by Health Education England was looking at workforce issues led by an interim director with the aim of increasing recruitment by both traditional and innovative methods by putting staff skill mixes to best use and promoting careers in health

·         One Public Estate was looking at provision of mental health facilities in Littlehampton

·         The Worthing Care Centre costs would be covered by the West Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group’s revenue expenditure

·         The Home First service had been discharging people quickly from hospital and would be expanded

·         The Primary Care Estates Strategy has identified that capacity is 30% below what  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

Report by Director of Law and Assurance.

The report details the proposed new operating model for the Approved Mental Health Professional Service.

7.1        The Committee considered a report by the Interim Executive Director for Adults & Health and Head of Health & Social Care Commissioning (copy appended to the signed minutes) which was introduced by Alan Adams, Interim Executive Director for Adults & Health who told the Committee: -

·         Following a review of the service in 2019, an interim arrangement was put in place in February 2020 to deal with the immediate risks

·         The new arrangement will be a hub and spoke model based on learning from other authorities and staff consultation – it will cost more than the old service, but less than the interim arrangement

7.2           Summary of responses to members comments and questions: -

·         The Committee was disappointed that it had not been made aware earlier of the issues surrounding the service and was told that problems were a result of administrative errors due to with the old service were caused by a combination of it being under resourced and a lack of oversight of staff when they staff were seconded to the Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (SPFT)

·         The Council had allowed the pool of staff who could be trained as Approved Mental Health Professionals (AMHPs) to be reduced to just those seconded to SPFT so this was being widened to former levels

·         The new model will be county-wide and have a specific AMHP lead manager and team which would do more than AMHP work

·         It was hoped that the service could use existing Council IT systems, but this did not prove possible, so a new solution was being sought

·         The new model solved the problem of night shift cover

·         Customers had been offered the chance to input into the development of the new model, but none had accepted due to the nature of the service

·         The hub would have a fixed number of staff with more in the spokes to supplement it

·         Although the new model would be more expensive than the old service, the budget would be balanced by making savings elsewhere and using improved Better Care Fund money

·         AMHPs come from many backgrounds, including Children’s and Adults’ services so there are always people with appropriate experience to deal with referrals regardless of the age of the patient

·         The increase in detentions under the Mental Health Act was not related to the number of AMHPs

·         There was no requirement to have Mental Health Act legal advice out of hours but was considered best practice

7.3           Resolved – that the Committee

                i.         Welcomes the direction of travel and is assured that, based on the information provided in the draft key decision report and following the debate, that the Council will be able to provide a legally compliant service able to meet demand into the future

               ii.         Requests that the new operating model is regularly monitored by the relevant internal governance mechanisms and asks to receive an update in 12 months’ time

The report informs the Committee of the Business Planning Group meeting held on 1 June, setting out the key issues discussed.

The Committee is asked to endorse the contents of this report, and particularly the Committee’s Work Programme revised to reflect the Business Planning Group’s discussions (attached at Appendix A).

8.1      Resolved – that the Committee notes the Business Planning Group report.

The Committee is asked to appoint five of its members to its Business Planning Group, to include the Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Committee, with two of the five being minority party members.

9.1      Resolved – that the Committee agrees the Business Planning Group membership as Cllr Turner (Chairman), Cllr Walsh (Vice Chairman),  Cllr Arculus, Cllr Boram and Cllr Oxlade.

Members to mention any items which they believe to be of relevance to the business of the Scrutiny Committee, and suitable for scrutiny, e.g. raised with them by constituents arising from central government initiatives etc.

If any member puts forward such an item, the Committee’s role at this meeting is just to assess, briefly, whether to refer the matter to its Business Planning Group to consider in detail.

10.1         The following topics were suggested as possible items for scrutiny by the Committee: -

·         Dentistry - to be considered by the Business Planning Group

·         Transition from children’s to adults’ mental health services – to be included at the meeting with the Children & Young People’s Services Scrutiny Committee and the West Sussex Youth Cabinet

The next meeting of the Committee will be held on 11 November at 10.30am. 

Items likely to be on the agenda include: -

·         Primary Care

·         Proposals to Improve Mental Health Services in West Sussex

Any member wishing to place an item on the agenda for the meeting must notify the Director of Law and Assurance by 27 October 2020.

11.1      The next meeting of the Committee will take place on 11 November 2020.