Issue - meetings

Background:

This report provided details of the Strategy to Reduce Social Isolation in Medway, which had been identified by the Health and Wellbeing Board as a key priority to tackle during 2014/15. The report provided details of the definition of social isolation and how it differed from loneliness, emphasising that social isolation could have a negative impact on health and wellbeing including an increased risk of dementia, high blood pressure, stress levels, poorer immunity and death.

The Health and Wellbeing Board had determined social isolation as one of its key priorities and would oversee the implementation of the strategy. This strategy had been developed with the overarching aim of preventing and reducing the complex range of harms associated with being socially isolated.  In order to achieve this aim, three key strategic themes had been identified;
 

·              Raising awareness

·              Action for individuals

·              Community Action.

The Health and Wellbeing Board considered the Strategy at its meeting on 21 October 2014 and its comments were set out in paragraph 6 of the report.

A Diversity Impact Assessment had been completed for the strategy and was set out in Appendix 2 to the report.  It was recommended that no further action was necessary.  The reason for this was due to the strategy not having actions that had negative effects on any of the protected characteristic groups.

Reasons:

The strategy aims to tackle the effects that social isolation can have on our community by raising awareness of the issue, exploring how the council and partners can take action with individuals and ensuring that we work with communities.