Agenda item

The Public Health Specialty Registrar will present a report to the Board on cost of living pressures, and potential impacts on our local population’s health. A proposed strategic approach and principles to tackle this countywide will be presented to the Board with a Recommendation for inclusion as an addendum in the West Sussex Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy 2019-2024.

31.1   The Board received a presentation (copy tabled at the meeting and appended to the agenda available on the website) on the Board’s Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy (JHWS) 2019-2024. The presentation to the Board focused on cost of living pressures, and potential impacts on the local population’s health. A proposed strategic approach was outlined and principles to tackle this countywide with a recommendation to the Board for inclusion as an addendum in the JHWS. The Assistant Director (Communities) and the Chief Executive of Worthing and Adur Councils also provided a verbal update to the Board on the approach to addressing cost of living pressures across the county, and current work being developed and implemented to support residents and communities. It was noted that whilst the report specifically focused on the proposed cost of living pressures addendum to the JHWS, it was also important to highlight, that in addition to this, the JHWS will be reviewed in light of current national policy to ensure it continues to meet the health and wellbeing needs of residents and communities.

31.2   In discussing the presentation the West Sussex Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy 2019-2024 was considered and the Board;

·       agreed that an understanding of how Cost of Living pressures were impacting the population needed to be established to help effectively target the response and how the utilisation of place based quantitive data was important for operational insight;

·       stated that maximising existing services ensuring good accessibility was key as well as ensuring close partnership working;

·       pointed out that West Sussex County Council’s Community Hub which was established in response to the pandemic was being utilised to support Cost of Living pressures. The County Council was noted as working in partnership to support people and families who are struggling with the rising cost of living. The government’s Household Support Fund is being used to provide financial and practical assistance to people especially during this winter. Working closely with district and borough councils and charities the council’s Community Hub continued to offer direct support to vulnerable households, providing essentials such as food and supplies, as well as grants to those who are eligible. It was also noted that the 36 West Sussex libraries offer a warm welcome to all visitors and library staff are on hand to help advise people on topics, from money management to energy saving, job seeking and benefits guidance; 

·       suggested that food banks be utilised as the front-line delivery point to those in need and integrate this model into existing pathways;

·       pointed out that District and Borough Councils were seeing people who had not normally needed support, working people and those not previously affected by hardship;

·       considered that mental health support was required due to the link between deprivation and mental health;

·       agreed that supportive infrastructure should be collaborative with a good strength of messaging, adopting the same working practices used with Covid-19;

·       informed that the voluntary sector was being impacted in terms of fundraising difficulties and staff had received no uplift in their salaries. It was seen as important that the strategy included the recognition of the voluntary sector in delivering a cost of living response;

·       outlined the increasing demands on the voluntary sector in terms of complex cases and a depleted workforce. It was viewed that staff recruitment and retention was a significant issue that needed to be addressed with the support of the county council.  It was pointed out that the emerging theme in the Integrated Care System was workforce wellbeing and this was being proposed for inclusion in the developing Integrated Care Strategy;

·       questioned whether partners could keep up with the pace of emerging cost of living pressures. It was acknowledged that Cost of Living could impact on the population for a long time and so a sustainable approach would be adopted in the Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy (JHWS) to address local, collective, Cost of Living issues. The JHWS would focus on partnership and collaborative working; and

·       requested a Seminar/Working Group to explore the response to Cost of Living as partners and question of Leadership in West Sussex. This was added to the Health and Wellbeing Board’s newly established Action Log for later consideration.

31.3   Resolved – that

i.            the potential impacts of cost of living pressures on our local population’s health and wellbeing, be acknowledged;

ii.           feedback had been provided on the proposed strategic approach and principles to tackle cost of living pressures in West Sussex as outlined in the Public Health Specialty Registrar’s presentation; and

iii.          the Public Health Specialty Registrar be approved to progress inclusion of the proposed cost of living addendum in the West Sussex Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy 2019-2024 (JHWS).