The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting. All the attendees present at the meeting introduced themselves to the Board.

An apology for absence was received from Dr Aditi Shah (CCG West Merton Locality Lead).

There were no declarations of interest.

RESOLVED: That the minutes held on 29^th September, 2020 were agreed as a correct record.

a)    Situational Awareness Report

b)    Local outbreak control

c)    Engagement with the community

The Director of Public Health provided an update on COVID-19 in line with the Situational Awareness Report which members received weekly. Members were reminded that the Health and Wellbeing Board had an important part in the governance of outbreak control.

The Director of Public Health set out the three major developments to help contain COVID-19: contact tracing, which had begun in Merton and would be very important in the future; testing, the data showed higher daily testing rates and anybody that experienced symptoms was encouraged to get tested; and, vaccination, where there were still practicalities to be worked through but was nevertheless very positive news.

The Director of Public Health referred to the COVID Winter Plan which had been published the day before, outlining the new tiered approach to follow lockdown from 2^nd December.

Arising from the discussion, the following points were highlighted:

·         People should be encouraged at every opportunity to have a flu vaccination, especially to allow the necessary gap between this and any COVID-19 vaccination.

·         Additional staff were being trained to administer vaccinations, once rolled out, to reduce pressure on the NHS.

·         There had been a continued rise in numbers of infections in schools and it was recognised how challenging this had been. Schools had been very effective in carrying out risk assessments and had adopted a range of measures to keep pupils safe. It was, however, pointed out, that some schools would still had limited experience and may need access to support from LCRC.

·         Mental Health referrals from primary care and acute settings were higher compared to last year.

The Chair concluded by thanking the Director of Public Health for her report which Members’ found very helpful.

Approval was sought for the Merton Carers’ Strategy 2021 – 2026 and for the Health and Wellbeing Board partners to contribute to the delivery of the priority outcomes and Implementation Plan.

John Morgan (Assistant Director, Adult Social Care), Heather Begg (Business Process Lead, Adult Social Care), Sally Burns (Carer and contributor to the Carers’ Strategy), Jacob Lawrence (NGDP Graduate) and Jenny Quested (Project Officer) presented the Strategy. Members were advised that the Carer Strategy Multi-Agency Implementation Board would be established to oversee the Carers’ Strategy together with task groups as required.

During the discussion the following points were highlighted:

·         The Assistant Director of Adult Social Care extended his gratitude to carers for their hard work and support, especially so during the pandemic.

·         In Merton, there were estimated to be between 16,000 to 20,000 carers.

·         The recent Carers UK National report had reflected the physical and mental impact which the pandemic had had on carers, who reported feeling overwhelmed at times.

·         The Strategy had been developed by carers, together with the Council, CCG, Mental Health Trust and voluntary sector.

·         It was vital that the voice of carers’ was heard and they would play an important role in the Carer Strategy Multi-Agency Implementation Board.

·         Development of the Strategy had involved a three-phased approach: an on-line and postal survey of carers; focus groups to draw out further insights; and, engaging with staff and practitioners.

·         Members noted the Implementation Plan outlining eleven key priority outcomes for the first year, including promoting digital equality for carers and carer friendly work environments.

·         There was an offer to Health and Wellbeing Board Members’ to join the Carer’s Strategy Multi-Agency Implementation Board and to report back to the Health and Wellbeing Board on progress following the first year of the strategy.

Members of the Board agreed that this was an important and impressive strategy which effectively captured the diversity of carers’ roles. The hard work and contribution of the graduate trainees was particularly recognised.

The Chair extended her thanks, on behalf of the Board, to the Carers Strategy Task Group and all the carers and the professionals who took part. 

The Director of Public Heath introduced the Merton CAMHS Strategy 2020 – 2023 and thanked the young people and families that had contributed. She explained that the support of Health and Wellbeing Board partners was now needed to deliver this strategy which focusses on the Health and Wellbeing Board Strategy principles including tackling health inequalities.

Sarah Keen (CAMHS Commissioning Manager) gave a summary of the strategy and referenced the common themes discussed during the meeting of prevention and involvement; in this case of children, young people and their families. She explained that the iThrive concept seeks to build on strength in the communities with an emphasis on need rather than diagnosis, recognising each young person is unique. The strategy also considered inequalities across Merton and transitions, including work with schools and pupil referral units, trying to address issues at an early stage.

Members were informed that there was an easy read version of the Strategy which had been designed with the Young Inspectors and also an action plan. The Board acknowledged the hard work from all partners, but recognised that there were challenges around accessing the services. The Board stressed how important is was for all organisations to ensure that services were accessible to a wide cohort of children and young people. It was also emphasised that, as well as involving children and young people in work like this, it was important to actively listen to them in our day-to-day service provision and interaction.

Members of the Board welcomed the CAMHS Strategy and noted the cross cutting theme of digital inclusion, with young people having to work remotely from school and the opportunity for innovative digital engagement. Reference was made to the opportunity to extend the current social prescribing activity to children and young people and work was taking place to develop this.

The Chair summarised the huge support for this work and requested a future report on progress to come to the Board in 12 to 18 months.