Agenda and minutes

To elect a Chairperson of the Health and Wellbeing Board for the forthcoming year.

Councillor Teresa Murray was elected as Chairperson of the Board for the 2025/26 Municipal Year.

To elect a Vice-Chairperson of the Health and Wellbeing Board for the forthcoming year.

Jonathan Wade Interim Chief Executive, Medway NHS Foundation Trust, was elected as Vice-Chairperson of the Board for the 2025/26 Municipal Year.

Apologies for absence were received from the following Board Members: Tass Alder, Healthwatch Medway, Paul Bentley, Integrated Care Board (ICB) Representative, Jackie Brown, Assistant Director Adult Social Care and Councillor Price.

An apology for absence was received from the following invited guest: Adrian Richardson, Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust.

To approve the record of the meeting held on 10 April 2025. 

The record of the meeting held on 10 April 2025 was signed by the Chairperson as correct.

The Chairperson will announce any late items which do not appear on the main agenda but which he/she has agreed should be considered by reason of special circumstances to be specified in the report. 

There were none.

Members are invited to disclose any Disclosable Pecuniary Interests or Other Significant Interests in accordance with the Member Code of Conduct. Guidance on this is set out in agenda item 6.

Disclosable pecuniary interests

There were none.

Other significant interests (OSIs)

There were none.

Other interests

There were none.

The discussions and decisions for this item can be found at 122a – 122d.

This report provides an update on current activity by Housing Services and related partners around preventing homelessness, including the key priorities of the Homelessness prevention and rough sleepers strategy and relevant parts of the Housing strategy to 2030. 

The rationale for this report coming to the Health and Wellbeing Board is due to the subject area being a sub priority within Theme 2, Reduce Poverty and Inequality: people living in affordable homes and the links between where someone lives and the levels of health inequality they experience.

Discussion:

The Board considered the update report on the activities by housing services and partners on homelessness prevention.

The Board learnt that the Housing Team and the Public Health Team worked closely together, and it was noted that physical and mental health needs of people were severely affected by their housing status. With their housing needs not being met in a suitable manner significantly resulting in a decline in overall health. There was a Medway Multiple Disadvantaged Network in place who focused on a small group of people in need in the most affected categories. There was also a range of supported housing options in place in Medway to support people with a range of needs including homelessness, ex-offenders, those with substance use issues, vulnerable young people and domestic abuse. There was however more to be done to target those with high dependency needs.

It was commented that there were people with multiple needs that were disadvantaged and did not meet thresholds and that this needed to be addressed. The Board was informed that the Integrated Care Board did commission and jointly support a small task and finish group on homelessness, mental health and people ending up in hospital as a result and it was concluded that collective joint effort was needed to support better outcomes for people at risk of homelessness in hospital.

The Medway lettings initiative was commended by the Board and that the progress of the initiative would be closely monitored.

It was commented that Medway has a long standing issue with supporting veterans, and it was asked how many veterans made up the homeless population, and what was being done to support this cohort who did not necessarily always reach out for help. Additionally, it was commented that the report lacked data that highlighted what was different from the previous strategy. It was acknowledged that support for veterans was an area that required more focused work and prioritisation for Medway, however, the numbers of veterans presenting as homeless had always remained low. The officer agreed to share the data from the return that was sent to Central Government with the Board. There had been an increased emphasis on partnership working, prevention and training offered to all partners on early identification of possible or potential homelessness. The team had been commended by the Ministry for Housing for the housing support provided, in particular, with the work done with rough sleepers in developing the Homelessness Strategy.

In response to a comment that relationships with private landlords needed to be strengthened, the officer agreed that the regulations may have an impact which was why they continued to reach out to build relationships and provide reassurance through the landlord forum.

There was concern regarding a lack of housing supply for Medway residents due to external agencies coming into Medway to buy up properties as well as people moving into Medway from surrounding areas due to low rent rates.

There were a significant number of multidisciplinary teams in place to support  ...  view the full minutes text for item 122a

This report will provide the Health and Wellbeing Board with an overview of the support and intervention available to improve the outcomes for Children in Care and Care Leavers, when considering their health and wellbeing needs and whilst considering the impact of poverty and inequality.

Discussion:

The Board considered the report which provided an overview of health outcomes, initial health assessments, dental check-ups and reviews.

It was suggested that it may be useful for the young people’s conference next year to focus on health.

It was commented that there appeared to be gaps in some of the support that was being given to young people, in particular, through the transition stages, supporting them with the adjustment of independent living. Additionally what support was provided when care leavers became Not in Employment Education or Training (NEET), and the impact this had on their health. The Board was informed that each child had their own Health Care Plan, which was shared with foster carers. The plan highlighted any additional needs to support their emotional wellbeing and support was provided accordingly. It was acknowledged that there were high instances of care leavers that were NEET and this situation was multifaceted, details of this would be provided to the Board. Transitions was a key piece of work, and officers working with young people needed to engage in conversations very early on development of skills. There was an aspiration officer working with young people and they were encouraged to attend community hubs to develop skills. There was also a mentoring scheme in place and partners across the Board were encouraged to promote sign up to this within their relevant organisations.

In response to a question on the role of schools and what happened when it was identified that a child was not making the expected progress, the Board was informed that progress was monitored, and discussions took place during termly Personal Education Meetings which were crucial for monitoring progress.

It was commented that it may be beneficial to conduct some research or tracking of progress of children who had left care. The Board was advised that whilst long term research was important, contrary to that was the prevention agenda which must remain a priority and focus as once a child  got to child in needs or looked after status, educational outcomes were impacted. 

Keeping children at the edge of care was crucial, as life outcomes changed when children entered the care system.

It was commented that there had been improvement in dental checks, and it was asked what was being done to ensure that young people understood the importance of health checks, as some had little or no understanding of why they should be undertaken. The officer explained that regular meetings took place with the Public Health teams on how to support and work with children and young people on access and importance of dental and health checks.

Decision:

The Board noted the report.

This paper aims to provide an overview of the data and work undertaken to date to address the employment rates of individuals with severe and enduring mental health who are under the care of secondary mental health services. The report seeks to evaluate the impact of Kent & Medway Individual Placement Support (IPS) Service on the local community. It will analyse key metrics such as service access, client outcomes, and overall performance to assess the programme’s effectiveness in helping individuals with mental health needs secure and sustain paid employment. The findings will offer valuable insights into the service's contributions to enhancing paid employment opportunities in the region. The report will also look at the recent impact report published by Shaw Trust which considers the wider impact of IPS across all of Shaw Trust services.

Discussion:

The Boad received the report which provided an overview of the data and work undertaken to date to address the employment rates of individuals with severe and enduring mental health who were under the care of secondary mental health services.

The service was focused on individual support. The Integrated Care Partnership Work and Health Strategy was added as an addendum to the report, which highlighted that employment was a positive factor in physical and mental wellbeing. It was vital that when people were supported into work, there was help available to sustain their employment. People must be supported to start, stay and succeed in work. There were strong partnerships across the Integrated Care Strategy to work with people to shape their future.

There had been significant national announcements such as Connect to Work and Get Britain Working which have been aligned to the Strategy. Through the Get Kent and Medway Working Plans, Get Britain Working White Paper, Skills and Education System, there had been extensive work undertaken to find out where to target support, bring together partners and develop a suite of actions to help people into work. There was also the imminent launch of the Connect to Work programme to support people with disabilities and health conditions or from specified disadvantaged groups.

It was asked what could be done to increase sector involvement and what the response from employers was to date to the programme. The Board was informed that one of the key principles was on employment engagement  and developing strong quality relationships. The Trust worked by exploring preferences and skills set of the people they worked with before approaching prospective employers. There was also a strong focus on raising awareness and destigmatising mental health as 1 in 4 people experienced mental health issues at any time.

In response to a question on support for people with basic skills, the officer said that they ensured that they referred people to organisations that could support them with basic skills training.

It was asked how it was ensured that when a person was matched with an employer, the support continued and was followed through, the officer said that an employment specialist continued on that journey with the young person by going into the workplace to support the person as needed.

It was asked what happened beyond the 13 week support, and the officer said that individual placements and support was time unlimited, some people stayed with the programme for a few months, some for longer. The programme was not recovery focused, nor did it create dependency but provided reassurance that support could be accessed if needed.

It was asked if the business plan model factored in costs associated with long term support. The officer said that whilst individual placement support was time unlimited, some people left the programme after 6 months in employment, whilst some did not want in-work support. Officers working with individuals were also able to say to an individual that they had provided all the support  ...  view the full minutes text for item 122c

The report analyses the enrolment figures over the specified period, highlighting trends, growth rates, and potential implications for educational resources and planning.

Discussion:

The Board considered the information presented on Medway Young People Not in Education Employment or Training.

Several questions and comments were raised including the following:

It was vital that discussions take place with Education Trusts on how young people could access Post 16 education outside of the conventional route.

Government to be lobbied for mid-year funding to enable young people to be admitted  to educational institutions at different times of the year that was not limited to the September entry.

Secondary School colleagues to explore the offer for young people that were unable to progress straight onto a Level 3 course.

Increased planning and provision were needed for young people to have a backup plan when they failed to attain the grades needed to secure a place at  their first choice school.

Vocational training needed more investment and addressing the heavily exam based system. There was a need for more education and training provision for future workforce development.

The officer acknowledged the comments made and informed the Board that in terms of Post 16, schools were fully funded for 3 years, and some schools were looking into their provision. The challenge was that Post 16 funding had a condition of a multiplier in that if a child dropped out, they would not just lose their funding, they would lose the multiplier, which made schools hesitant to take risks. It was further commented that the dropout rates in college were high with children going onto courses that they did not want. It was vital going forward that the offer for children be aligned with their career aspirations which had changed significantly over the years.

Decision:

a)     The Board noted the report.

b)     Officers to look into the possibility of holding an education symposium to explore the impact and discuss potential solutions of the complex problem.

c)     The Board to write to the Department for Education on the difference in funding for Post 16 provision between schools and colleges.

The report advises the Board of the forward work programme for discussion in the light of latest priorities, issues and circumstances. It gives the Board an opportunity to shape and direct the Board’s activities.

Discussion:

Items for the theme for the September meeting as identified by the Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy performance indicators were suggested and agreed by the Board.

The items brought forward under the Safe, Connected and Sustainable Places theme were:

• Percentage of adults walking for travel at least three days per week
• Serious Violence
• Road Casualties

It was agreed that the Lidsing Development item would be deferred to the November meeting.

A Member suggested that the Board include in its work programme the ICB Strategy and as suggested at the last meeting, a report in health infrastructure implications of Local Plan regulation 19. The Democratic Services Officer to work with officers on appropriate timeline for this.

Decision:

The Board agreed the work programme as set out in Appendix 1 to the report and the items suggested for the September 2025 meeting.