Agenda item

The Panel is invited to comment on the progress of the Health Inequalities Project.

(Councillor Kadewere left the meeting during the discussion on this item. See Members Interests).

With the assistance of a report by the Health Inequalities Project Manager and a power-point presentation (copies of which are appended in the Minute Book) the Panel received an update on the District’s Health Inequalities Project, which was designed to address localised health inequalities, build community resilience, and prevent the escalation of health issues.

Following the presentation, the Executive Councillor for Community and Health Councillor Pitt paid tribute to all those who had been involved within the initiatives and projects and to the individual Groups themselves who had all achieved some significant successes.

In response to a question from Councillor Criswell as to how other communities could be encouraged to become involved, the Panel were informed that on this occasion the projects selected had been driven by speed and necessity.  Funding had also been provided to those groups that already had the accredited recognition process. However, it was hoped that now a pathway and working model had been developed this could be shared more widely within the district. It was also pointed out that although funding was seeded into the 15 areas, it could still be spread into neighbouring villages. 

Councillor Bywater reflected on the difficulties and challenges in reaching some of the smaller parishes and commented whether there might be any potential to ask for expressions of interests from groups or organisations. He also commented on the issues being faced because of inadequate transportation in some areas of the district. To which, the Executive Councillor agreed that the availability of buses continued to be a health issue as people became isolated and couldn’t get to services and social groups.

Councillor Alban welcomed the sharing of ideas and benefits between neighbouring villages; however, he sought confirmation that grants weren’t being given to the same groups because they were well organised and knew the application process. He also welcomed the availability of a specialist youth worker to work with young people to address well-being and mental health issues but commented on the potential for this to duplicate the existing work of the County Council’s Youth Service. Finally, Councillor Alban welcomed the increased use of signposting as a positive move – enabling individuals to take actions for themselves which brought positive outcomes.

In response to Councillor Alban’s comments, Officers explained that the groups involved within the project had had to commit to significant work including consultations, surveys, pilot projects and community events. The mental health package had been put together in conjunction with the County Council, the local school, local GP surgery, local prescribers and the local youth club by a volunteer and all groups have also been urged to ensure that the right people are doing the expert’s jobs.

The Executive Councillor acknowledged that whilst there were certain groups that were good at writing applications for grant funding, there was often a correlation between those groups and those that are good at delivery. In many cases there was a well-established relationship between these groups and the District Council with their capacity to deliver already being recognised.  Whilst duplication is an important issue, sometimes having a breadth of offer can be helpful and in his opinion duplication in some areas was not always a terrible thing.

Officers explained that the network of capability and support which had developed from the projects had been evident at the recent celebratory event detailed within the presentation. Officers were confident that the initiative had established a network of community champions and support that was self-reliant and self-supporting. It was hoped that something similar could be achieved from the celebratory event for the Warm Hubs project in due course.

Following a question from Councillor Shaw regarding the funding for 2023/24 and specifically the resources for staffing beyond the end of June, the Panel were advised that it had been evident that the availability of dedicated resources had made a significant difference in building up the relationships with and the resilience of the community groups. However, it was intended to consider a more active community engagement role for next year’s funding.

Councillor McAdam asked how engaged and involved local GPs were with this project. The Panel were informed that work was ongoing to build further links here.

Councillor Harvey enquired whether an organisation who was already operating a scheme which might well fit into this would be able to approach the District Council regarding the forthcoming round of funding. In response, it was explained that the District Council’s proposal for 2023/24 was not yet written, however it was envisaged that the Integrated Care System might wish to include more rigour into this year’s proposal and with this in mind were looking to give a focus to individual Districts.

Finally, and in response to a question from Councillor Lowe as to what effort was made to encourage individuals to attend events and projects, the Panel were advised that all the Groups had undertaken substantial consultation exercises prior to the launch of their projects including in some cases pilot exercises and it was hoped that that this would pay dividends in terms of attendance.