Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Paul Bentley, Integrated Care Board (ICB) Representative, Councillor Coombs, Councillor Curry, Councillor Lawrence, Martin Riley, Joint Senior Responsible Officer, Medway and Swale Integrated Care Partnership and Jonathan Wade, Interim Chief Executive, Medway NHS Foundation Trust.

An apology was also received from the following invited guest:

Dr Caroline Rickard, Kent and Medway Local Medical Committee.

To approve the record of the meeting held on 26 June 2025.

The record of the meeting held on 26 June 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 4.

Disclosable pecuniary interests

There were none.

Other significant interests (OSIs)

There were none.

Other interests

There were none.

This report details two areas for discussion as requested by the Board. They relate to rates of Serious Violence in Medway and Death and Serious Injury on the roads. These are issues that, according to the data provided, sit above national averages. The presentations identifies the current picture in relation to these areas, the governance in place to keep the public of Medway safe and a summary of key activity in relation to both issues.

Serious Violence

Discussion:

The Board received a presentation on Serious Violence and was informed on the following:

·        The Police were committed and determined to keep people safe and tackle serious violent crime.

·        Data was reviewed over a rolling year to track progress against previous years. Most serious violence was demonstrating a downward trend, whereas drug offences and possession of drugs and weapons continued to rise. This was reflective of the proactive work being undertaken in this area as figures would otherwise be low otherwise.

·        There were three hot spot zones in Medway, these were defined by data from the Government and Home office for offences pertaining to knife crime, violent crime and anti-social behaviour. These areas were Rochester, Chatham Town Centre and Gillingham. There was funding received from the Home Office used to uplift patrolling hours and officers in those areas. From 1 June till end of August there were extra patrolling with over 1000 hours of uniformed officers in Chatham, 600 in Gillingham and all areas had their own specific priorities.

·        As part of tackling crime related issues, in place was the Community Safety Partnership (CSP) led by a Medway Councillor. The CSP held the police to account on police led issues and activity. There was strong partnership in place with members working collectively to address issues.

·        The Community Safety Unit in Medway consisted of circa 50 members of staff dedicated to working with the community, and there was a neighbourhood task force in place to deal with specific problems. The task force at present worked on issues of serous violence. There was also a proactive Investigation Team leading on work relating county lines and serious and complex investigations.

·        A full report was made available daily on all matters and activities were therefore tasked based on the daily report. Using principles linked to the National Intelligence Model, there was a monthly process to address all types of crime, but violent crime was a priority. There was also extensive tracking of individuals, locations and venues, with additional resources put into areas highlighted as presenting with the most significant issues. All work was not guided by data and intelligence as there was also reliance on reporting by the community.

·        Work undertaken was not limited to enforcement, there was also a strong focus on prevention and targeting of people that perpetuate crime. There was a holistic approach undertaken through work with partners from Youth Offending, Children’s Services and Pupil Referral Units as preventative measures for vulnerable young people in being perpetuators and victims of crime. The Serious Crime directorate was responsible for serious crime groups and underpinning their work were robust governance processes and analysis.

·        There were still areas of improvement needed, and the neighbourhood work and model was central to the journey and tackling issues better.

Members raised questions and comments which included:

The Chairperson reminded the Board that this was an opportunity to delve into the impact of serious violence on health, including mental, physical, economic health. It was crucial  ...  view the full minutes text for item 282a

The refreshed version of the Climate Change Action Plan was considered and adopted by the Cabinet on 26 August 2025.  It is the third iteration of the plan since the Council’s declaration of a climate change emergency in 2019.  Its vision aligns with the One Medway Council Plan priority “enjoying clean, green, safe and connected communities.”

The actions within the plan aim to reduce carbon emissions in line with the One Medway Council Plan objective to achieve net zero by 2050 and increase resilience against the impacts of climate change for both Medway Council and Medway “the Place”. The plan has been refreshed to reflect the Council’s current approach to climate action and aligns with the Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy.

Discussion:

The Board received the refreshed Climate Change Action Plan which aligned closely with the One Medway Council Plan and the Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy . This is the third action plan since 2019 when the Council declared a climate emergency, and since then, both Council headquarters and the Medway area overall emissions had reduced by over 30%. There were two overarching aims of the Action Plan which were to reduce carbon emissions by 2050 and to improve resilience to climate change both for the Council directly and the area of Medway as a place and a community. The Action Plan was structured around five priority areas detailed in the report.

It was important for the Council to support all of its communities to understand what a changing climate means for them, what they can do to take action, individually and collectively, where to go for guidance and support and to understand the wider benefits of taking action. The Board was reminded that the effects of climate change had a disproportionate impact on vulnerable groups, particularly older adults, young children and those with long term health conditions.

The Board was asked to consider how they could work in partnership to support the aspirations of the Plan for example, through knowledge sharing, community engagement, infrastructure, or service delivery.

Members made the following comments and raised questions:

It was recognised that for the first time there was significant progress and actions taking place to meet net zero by the target date.

The Medway Voluntary Action (MVA) reaffirmed their commitment to driving forward the aspirations of the Plan and commented that there were several things that would be useful in driving forward actions, such as a toolkit or provision of resources that could be shared with the community. Officers agreed to work with the MVA on any specific resources that may be useful. It was also commented that resources on Climate Change were shared through the Council website as well as social media platforms.

The MVA was asked how many charities had an objective to address climate change, and if was it possible to do a comparison to determine how best to support them. The Board was informed that a full audit had not been completed but an opportunity to poll Charities on whether they had a policy and statement on climate change would be explored. However,  it was envisaged that many would as it was often a requirement linked to funding.

It was commented that Medway NHS Foundation Trust was in the process of revising its Green Plan and had just been awarded a grant to decarbonise its estate. The opportunity for more joined up working alongside being a stakeholder would be welcomed. Additionally, it was expressed that this grant would make a difference to patients, practice and the hospitals ability to deliver its targets. It was suggested that there may be opportunities to work in partnership to deliver synergies. Officers agreed to discuss this with Medway NHS Foundation Trust.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 283.

Health and Wellbeing Boards are under a statutory duty to develop and update their Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) every three years. NHS (Pharmaceutical Services and Local Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2013 and the NHS Act 2006 as amended by the Health and Social Care Act 2012, set out the requirements to develop and update PNAs. The previous PNA for Medway was published in October 2022 and an updated PNA must be published by 1 October 2025 – it is scheduled for consideration and approval at this meeting of the Health and Wellbeing Board.

Discussion:

The Board received the updated Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) for 2025-2028 for approval. and were informed of the process that had contributed to development of the refreshed PNA, including the consultation process and the steering groups involvement in its development.

Production of the PNA was statutory duty that must be delivered every three years and involved a very prescribed process to be followed. It was vital to understand that the PNA was not an assessment of quality of service. It was however acknowledged that there were inconsistencies in provision across Medway, with a shortage of pharmacies on the Peninsula but based on the population, the provision in that area was adequate.

The Board was informed that 47% of pharmacies were not profitable and there were risks of closures associated with high numbers of pharmacies in any area.

The Board was informed that the report had been scrutinised by the Health and Adult Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee which had provided robust challenge on the way that the PNA was written, which was described as not very user and public friendly. As a result, there was work being undertaken on production of a shorter more concise version which would be made available in due course.

It was commented that the mechanism to challenge and highlight concerns regarding performance issues was through the health commissioners. It was also noted that there had been low uptake to the consultation process by providers and going forward it was prudent to explore how to improve engagement in light of the collective idea of increase to the pharmacy offer as a means to reduce pressures on GPs and emergency services.

The Chairperson sought the Board’s consent to represent the Board and meet with representatives of pharmacies to discuss how to improve engagement.

Comments were also made on the following:

·        Pharmacies in some areas of Medway were not easily accessible and could only be accessed by car and this was contrary to the aspiration of the Climate Change Action Plan. It was important that measures be taken to improve the transport infrastructure of Medway.

·        Ensuring that the needs of vulnerable groups and those living in more deprived sections of the community were taken into consideration.

It was advised that these concerns and the way services were delivered were outside of the PNA framework and that the meeting proposed would provide an opportunity for discussions to take place.

Decision:

a) The Health and Wellbeing Board approved the Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment 2025-2028.

b) The Board agreed for the Chairperson to arrange and meet with representatives from pharmacy services as a means to improve engagement and build better relationships.

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:

Members considered a report regarding the Board’s work programme, and the Democratic Services officer confirmed that going forward, a small table would be added to the work programme to reflect progress on actions.

Decision:

The Board agreed the work programme as set out in Appendix 1 to the report.