Agenda and draft minutes
Venue: Conference Room 1a, County Hall, Ruthin
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APOLOGIES |
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DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST Minutes: Councillor Bill Tasker declared a personal interest as a Community Health Council member. |
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URGENT MATTERS AS AGREED BY THE CHAIR Minutes: No items were
raised which in the opinion of the Chair, should be considered at the meeting
as a matter of urgency pursuant to Section 100B(4) of the Local Government Act,
1972. |
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MINUTES OF THE LAST MEETING PDF 149 KB To receive the minutes of the Partnerships Scrutiny Committee held on the 6th February, 2014 (copy enclosed). Minutes: The Minutes of a meeting of
the Partnerships Scrutiny Committee held on Thursday, 6th February,
2014 were submitted. Matters arising:- 8. BIG PLAN Performance Update
– The Scrutiny Coordinator explained that she was awaiting a response from the
Partnerships and Communities Team Leader in respect of issues raised by the
Chair. Members were informed that a
Business Item relating to the BIG PLAN 2 would be presented to the Scrutiny
Committee in July, 2014. RESOLVED – that, subject to the above,
the Minutes be received and approved as a correct record. |
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TOGETHER FOR MENTAL HEALTH NORTH WALES PARTNERSHIPS REPORT PDF 77 KB To consider a report by the Service Manager: South Locality (copy enclosed) which highlighted progress on the actions required in response to the delivery plan in Together for Mental Health and shares some of the challenges and priorities for partners over the coming year. 9.35 a.m. Additional documents: Minutes: A copy of a report by the Service
Manager: South Locality had
been circulated with the papers for the meeting. The
report highlighted
progress on the actions required in response to the delivery plan for “Together
for Mental Health” (TMH) attached at Appendix 1, and outlined some of the
challenges and priorities for partners over the coming year. It detailed information on the recently
established North Wales Partnership Board and its role in supporting and
overseeing adherence to and progress against the delivery plan. The report outlined the submission by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health
Board (BCUHB) to the WG of the annual report on TMH and highlighted the actions
recommended for 2014/15. In October, 2012 WG published TMH, a whole population strategy for
mental health and wellbeing in Wales.
The vision in the document and Sustainable Social Services provided an
ambitious mental health agenda for the next few years with a clear emphasis on
shared responsibility between the health service and local government. Following consultation with stakeholders WG
had developed 6 high level outcomes within Together for Mental Health. These had been detailed in the report, and
further developed in the document which identified more detailed outcomes, and
included:- TMH was supported by a Delivery Plan which set out details of the
actions which WG and partner agencies would take to deliver the plan. It identified the contributions required from
WG, local government, the health service, third sector and a range of others
including for example housing, education, training and lifelong learning,
employers, and the criminal justice system.
The final chapter of the document set out how the strategy would work at
National and local level and how the new National Partnership Board would
ensure its delivery. In June, 2013 BCUHB
established the North Wales Mental Health Partnership Board (NWMHPB) to oversee
the delivery and implementation of TMH and its delivery plan, and in October,
2013 submitted the annual report to WG.
Appendix 2 included the respective Terms of Reference. The Annual Report included progress to date
and reference to some of the challenges and priorities for the coming year,
together with, evidence of the ongoing commitment to working jointly with
health and other partners to deliver the necessary actions. During the ensuing discussion the strong working relationship in the
field of mental health between BCUHB and Denbighshire's Social Services
Department at service-user level was commended.
As were the principles and actions in the strategy and
Action Plan which were endorsed.
However, a number of concerns were raised regarding local delivery of
mental health services to adults, children and the elderly. The main concerns related to:- · the waiting times experienced by
children and young people in accessing the services of Child and Adolescent
Mental Health Service (CAMHS) which had the potential to impact on the
individual's education, BCUHB officers agreed to prepare an information report
for members on how the money recently awarded by the Welsh Government (WG) to
the Service would be used to improve CAMHS waiting lists and other
services. They also agreed to provide
information on the progress achieved to date, and anticipated future progress,
in rolling out the availability of CAMHS trained staff in all A&E
Departments in North Wales. · the
number of Welsh speaking Mental Health trained staff working in each local
authority area, particularly the number of Welsh speaking psychiatrists. BCUHB officials agreed to provide information
on this, including the specialist area of work in which they worked. · the delay encountered in re-opening Tawelfan Ward at Ysbyty Glan Clwyd following its closure in late 2013 on quality and safety of patient care ... view the full minutes text for item 5. |
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To consider a report by the AONB Officer (copy enclosed) for the Committee to provide observations regarding the proposed governance arrangements for the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley AONB.
10.35 a.m. Additional documents: Minutes: A
copy of a report by
the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) Officer had
been circulated
with the papers for the meeting. Councillor H.Ll. Jones introduced the report and explained that the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley AONB Designation Order provided
new national recognition and landscape protection to a substantial part of
Counties of Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham. Geographical details of the AONB were
included in Appendix 1. The
Principal Countryside Officer: Warden Services (PCOWS) informed the Committee that in recognition of the expanded area the
existing AONB Committee and the Joint Advisory Committee (JAC) had reviewed its
membership and agreed a balanced membership for LAs with each being invited to
send 3 Members to future meetings of the JAC Committee. The JAC had recommended a stronger LA
relationship and agreed that the Joint Committee (JC) Model would be the best
mechanism to achieve this aim. The Chair
of the JAC and AONB Officer had met with the Leaders, Chief Executives and Lead
Officers who were supportive. The
Committee had provided observations on governance, particularly scrutinising
the arrangements for the new JC within Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham
Councils. The Legal Agreement, Appendix
2, defined the JC’s membership, delegated powers and roles. The PCOWS confirmed that the JC’s main role would be
to ‘discharge the delegated functions of AONB management, with the key role
being ‘the conservation and enhancement of the area’s natural beauty.’ The Clwydian Range and Dee Valley AONB incorporated a
significant central geographical land mass with popular attractions, and the
AONB provided a significant health and wellbeing opportunity to the
conurbations in Deeside, Wrexham, Cheshire and Merseyside. Reference was made to the change in the
economic function of the respective LA’s with an increasing reliance on rural
tourism. A summary of the following key
benefits of the JC had been included in the report:- ·
Greater
Visibility of the AONB. ·
Improved
clarity. ·
Improved
co-ordination of AONB Actions. ·
Improved
efficiency and effectiveness. ·
Explicit
strategy. ·
Focused
Leadership. ·
Responsible
stewardship . ·
Icons. The JC was
perceived as ‘good practice’ for the governance of the AONB and the AONB
Officers would develop many of the aspects of the existing Interim JAC. The JC would establish the AONB Partnership
at its first meeting, and membership details had been provided. To indicate a comprehensive approach to
consultation the AONB would hold an Annual AONB Forum, each having a topical
theme. LA Members and Community Councils
who had all or part of their Ward within the AONB would be invited, together
with other interested bodies and individuals. During the
consideration of the report Members were advised of the rationale behind having
an equitable number of Cabinet Members from each of the three Local Authorities
on the Joint Committee and Partnership Group, despite the fact that the
majority of the AONB was geographically within Denbighshire's county borders. It was explained
that Denbighshire would be the Lead Authority. Its and the other Councils'
contribution towards the administration of the AONB would be paid into and
accounted for on a separate budget line for audit and transparency
purposes. The Committee was advised that
once all the LA’s had approved the proposal to establish a Joint Committee for
the purpose of discharging the delegated functions of AONB Management, a Joint
Partnership Group made up of a wider group of stakeholders would be established
to develop a management plan for the AONB area.
Assurances were given that if additional financial resources would be required at any point AONB officers would have to approach all constituent Councils with a bid for the additional finances. Members stressed the importance of permitting ... view the full minutes text for item 6. |
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SCRUTINY WORK PROGRAMME PDF 56 KB To consider a report by the Scrutiny Coordinator (copy enclosed) seeking a review of the Committee’s Forward Work Programme and updating Members on relevant issues. 11.15 a.m. Additional documents: Minutes: A copy of a report by the
Scrutiny Coordinator, which requested the Committee to review and
agree its Forward Work Programme and provided an update on relevant issues, had been circulated with the
papers for the meeting. The Cabinet’s
Forward Work Programme had been included as Appendix
2 and a table summarising recent Committee
resolutions, and advising on progress with their implementation, had been
attached at Appendix 3 to the report. The Committee considered its draft Forward Work Programme for future
meetings, as detailed in Appendix 1, and Members requested that Lead Members Councillors R.L. Feeley and
D.I. Smith be invited to present their reports at the June, 2014 meeting of the
Committee. It was explained that the Committee had been scheduled to consider a
report on the Rural Development Plan Partnership at its meeting on the 13th
March, 2014 which had been cancelled. As
the required representatives had been unable to attend the current meeting or
the Committee’s next meeting in June, the report’s presentation had been
rescheduled for the meeting on the 10th July, 2014. The Scrutiny Coordinator
informed Members that an information report, which provided an explanation of
Direct Payments and Information about the development of Single Point of
Access, had been circulated with the Information Brief for the meeting. In response to a question from Councillor J.A. Davies, the Head of Adult and
Business Services explained that a progress report in respect of this issue would be provided following its
implementation. In response to a question from
the Chair, the Scrutiny Coordinator explained that the Scrutiny Chairs and Vice
Chairs Group would be considering the request for the submission of a report,
to the appropriate Scrutiny Committee, in respect of proposed changes to the
Sheltered Housing Wardens Service. RESOLVED – that, subject to the above, the Work
Programme as set out in Appendix 1 to the report be approved. |
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FEEDBACK FROM COMMITTEE REPRESENTATIVES To receive any
updates from Committee representatives on various Council Boards and Groups
11.30 a.m. Minutes: Members
of the Committee provided the following details in respect of various
Council boards and groups:- Copies of reports on a Service Visit to the Pavilion
Theatre, Rhyl and a Service Visit with Revenues and
Benefits at Russell House, Rhyl, which had been
attended by Councillor D. Owens, had been circulated with the information
papers for the meeting. RESOLVED – that the
reports be received. Meeting ended at 12.25 p.m. |