Agenda and minutes

To confirm the Minutes of the Meeting held on 20 November 2018.

The Minutes of the Meeting held on 20 November 2018 were confirmed as a correct record and signed.

To receive apologies for absence and note any substitutions.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Denis Leigh and Val Henry. Councillor Patricia Ellis was in attendance as a substitute.

To receive from Members declarations of interests in relation to any items included on the agenda for this meeting, in accordance with Waverley’s Code of Local Government Conduct.

There were no declarations of interests in connection with items on the agenda.

The Chairman to respond to any written questions received from members of the public in accordance with Procedure Rule 10.

The deadline for receipt of questions is 5pm on 12 February 2019.

A question was received from Heather Hullah as follows:

With reference to the Committee’s briefing and discussion on loneliness and social isolation at their meeting in November 2018, can you provide an update on what Waverley is doing to expand the reach of activities that address loneliness and social isolation, such as Men’s  Shed in Cranleigh and the Otago Falls Prevention classes in Haslemere and Farnham; and, whether there are any plans to provide social support for new mothers in view of the planned closure of the SCC Children’s Centres in Haslemere and Farnham

The Chairman responded:

The Communities and Leisure Services Teams continued to work in partnership with the voluntary sector, statutory organisations and Places Leisure to deliver activities and services across the borough, both in community settings and Waverley’s Leisure Centres, promoting them to the wider community.  The council was embarking on a review of its Ageing Well Action Plan and this would include reviewing preventative services and activities to help address loneliness and rural isolation for Waverley’s older residents; support for carers, particularly older carers; increase the Let’s Get Steady programme across the borough; the offer for older people at Farnham Memorial Hall; and activities for people living with dementia.

Waverley’s Leisure Team were working in partnership with Places Leisure and health colleagues to plan and deliver a number of projects, and although these were not specifically to address loneliness and social isolation this was a significant and  beneficial by-product.  These include extending the Otago provision across the borough, Sandy Hill activities, Friday Night Project for young people (already launched and extremely successfully in Cranleigh and due to launch in Farnham in Spring), and the Forever Active programmes at the leisure centres for older people. 

In relation to providing social support for new mothers in view of the planned closure of the Surrey County Council’s Children’s Centres in Haslemere and Farnham, although it was not directly part of Waverley’s remit to fill this gap there were opportunities through activities at the leisure centres, and through arts and cultural organisations Maltings.

After giving the response, the Chairman suggested that it may be beneficial to have a task and finish group on loneliness in the new Council Year,

The Chairman to respond to any questions received from Members in accordance with Procedure Rule 11.

The deadline for receipt of questions is 5pm on 12 February 2019.

There were none.

Farnham Post Office is currently located at 107 West Street, Farnham. The Post Office is consulting on proposals to relocate to within the curtilage of WH Smith at 14, The Borough, Farnham. The consultation process started on 23 January and will close on 6 March. There is understandably much local interest and concern about the proposed move.

We have published the consultation on the council’s website, circulated details to all Farnham ward members and are encouraging residents and businesses to respond to the consultation.  The Post Office has been invited to attend Community Wellbeing Overview & Scrutiny Committee on 19 February but if they are unable to attend a special meeting could be arranged.

Recommendation

That the Committee responds to the consultation after its meeting, and that a separate response is sent from the Portfolio Holder.

The Committee received a report outlining the consultation on proposals to relocate Farnham Post Office within the curtilage of WH Smith at 14, The Borough, Farnham. The consultation period would end on 6 March and the Committee was asked for its view in order for a response to be sent to the consultation.

Mark Gibson, the Post Office External Affairs Manager, was present to outline the proposal and respond to any questions.

Mark gave some background to the current Post Office service and reported that 5 years ago the Post Office had started a process of transformation to enable the business to develop with the times, introduce new services and extend opening times. Working with WH Smith allowed the Post Office to retain a presence on the high street.  The Committee was assured that, despite perceptions, the move was not a done deal and the PO wanted their feedback and that of the public. There would be a consultation event the following week.

Councillor Beaman asked how many other locations the Post Office had considered in the high street, as WH Smith was on a very narrow pathway where there was a lot of traffic. Mark responded that the PO understood the importance of a post office in the community and was aware of the petition. The PO wanted to go into partnership with a Farnham retailer which was a good fit; they had a number of partnerships with WH Smith in other locations and had confidence in the operating model.

The existing location of the post office in Farnham was leased from the Royal Mail, and the PO was not aware of the long-term plans for the premises.

Councillor Hodge asked about the access, noting it was a restrictive part of town with  heavy traffic, and asked if there was any intention of improving the entrance to the store. Mark responded that it would be difficult because of the infrastructure of the building, but that this was no different for all the shops along that route. Inside they were making a number of changes to improve access to the post office from the shop entrance.

Councillor Else asked about the services currently provided, and whether the same level of service would be provided after it moved. Mark confirmed that there would be no change to the services offered, except for the loss of the ATM. There would be an increased focus on self service, with two machines available; but the PO did still see the need to have face to face interaction with customers.

Councillor Wheatley raised her concerns about the robustness of the partnership with WH Smith, citing the Godalming post office which had been situated in the bookshop (Waterstones) but had been required to move. Mark responded that it was impossible to predict what would happen on the high street over the next five years; however, they were confident that the partnership with WH Smith was viable. Councillor Wheatley asked what would happen to the current post  ...  view the full minutes text for item 39.

This report presents the three-year Service Plans for April 2019 to March 2022 for the service areas under the remit of this Committee.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Community Wellbeing Overview & Scrutiny Committee:

Considers the Service Plans for 2019-2022 as set out at Annexe 1 and makes any observations to the Management Team and any policy recommendations to the Executive.

The Committee was presented with the three year Service Plans for the services under its remit, and asked to consider comment on the objectives and actions proposed by Heads of Service.

The Committee noted that the Service Plans had been prepared by Heads of Service and their teams and Portfolio Holders, and described the service objectives for the coming three years in line with the Corporate Strategy 2018-2023 and the Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP) 2019-2022.  In the past, Service Plans had focused on the current financial year only. In order to be more closely aligned with the Council’s MTFP, each Service Plan now covered the period up to 2022. As an important management tool they included business as usual outcomes and actions as well as service-wide and cross-cutting projects.

The Committee thanked officers for the service plans and were pleased with progress so far and hoped that this continued. They asked that Richard Homewood look into Taxi drivers and whether they needed a standard or enhanced DBS. Taking into account the question of the public speaker at the start of the meeting, they suggested that they look into loneliness in the next Council year.

The Committee endorsed the Service Plans to the Executive for approval.

The Corporate Performance Report provides an analysis of the Council’s performance for the third quarter of 2018-19. The report, set out at Annexe 1, is being presented to each of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees for comment and any recommendations they may wish to make to the Executive. At the request of the Chairman and Vice-chairman of the Housing O&S Committee this item will be presented to the Housing O&S Committee for information only.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Overview & Scrutiny Committees considers the performance of the service areas under the remit of the committee as set out in Annexe 1 to this report and makes any recommendations to senior management or the Executive as appropriate.

The Committee received a report outlining corporate performance for the third quarter of 2018/19. The report was used as a performance management tool by senior management and it was presented to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee to scrutinise the progress against the Council’s goals and objectives.

The Committee noted the report and was pleased to see that there had been a number of successes by the services under its remit. The report was noted, and the Committee thanked officers for a clear and thorough report. 

To receive a presentation on the revised NHS and Integrated Care System and Partnership arrangements

The Committee received a presentation on the new health landscape and changes to health arrangements. The NHS has a new long term plan and a new approach for health services focussed on:

·         Giving people more control over their own health and the care they receive

·         Encouraging more collaboration between GPs and community services, as ‘primary care networks’, to increase the services they could provide jointly

·         Increasing the focus on NHS organisations working with their local partners, as ‘Integrated Care Systems’ (ICS), to plan and deliver services which meet the needs of their communities.

The NHS wanted to increase its contribution to tackling some of the most significant causes of ill health, including new action to help people stop smoking, overcome drinking problems and avoid Type 2 diabetes, with a particular focus on the communities and groups of people most affected by these problems. The NHS workforce would be increased, training and recruiting more professionals – more clinical placements for undergraduate nurses, more medical school places and more routes into the NHS such as apprenticeships. There was an aim to make the NHS a better place to work, so more staff stayed in the NHS and felt able to make better use of their skills and experience for patients.

The NHS wanted to provide more convenient access to services and health information for patients, with the new NHS App as a digital ‘front door’; better access to digital tools and patient records for staff; and improvements to the planning and delivery of services based on the analysis of patient and population data. Additionally, the NHS wanted to continue working with doctors and other health professionals to identify ways to reduce duplication in how clinical services are delivered, make better use of the NHS’ combined buying power to get commonly-used products more cheaply, and reduce spend on administration.

The Committee was advised that nationally there would be a shift toward devolution of powers, responsibilities, and funding away from central organisations (e.g. NHS England) to local areas. Outside of Greater Manchester, Surrey Heartlands was the second  Devolved Care System – this meant that there was significant pressure to deliver and the area was under the national spotlight. There were 10 ICS areas. As part of the Surrey Heartlands ICS structure, three Integrated Care Partnerships (ICP) had been created. The ICPs included commissioners and providers for each area coming together to deliver health and care services in partnership. These partnerships would be responsible for the delivery of care to their populations. It would be the responsibility of the ICPs to deliver best practice care for their populations and to set local outcomes that achieved the core outcomes of the ICS while also reflecting the local priorities of their population.

The aim was that the ICS and ICPs would be operating under shadow arrangements from April 2019. The ICS would develop and implement their own strategies for the next five years. By April 2019 local plans would be published for 2019/20 and by Autumn 2019  ...  view the full minutes text for item 42.

To provide an overview of the service that Careline provides and to provide an update on how the service is progressing.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the service continues to move forward on the progress it has made over the last year focussing on operating as efficiently as possible by embedding the changes to back office procedures and the implementation of the service using the Agresso database, excellent customer service, and business development.

The Committee received a report on the Careline service including an update on progress against the business plan.

The Committee noted that Careline continued to perform well, generating a healthy surplus year on year. Whilst there were apparent opportunities for growth, the 5% target remained challenging to achieve, and was mirrored by other providers of similar services. The Council’s objective was to continue to grow the service, reaching more vulnerable residents across the borough, and the work that had been undertaken to streamline back office procedures, and changes in personnel, would improve the service delivery and enable a focus on growing the service more effectively.

The Committee asked whether the service was promoted via medical centres and General Practice surgeries. Officers confirmed that the service was promoted in this way but they were looking at other ways to advertise the benefits of Careline. The Council’s selling point was that they installed the equipment and that there were no upfront costs.

The Committee noted the report.

The previous Meals on Wheels Service, delivered by The Royal Voluntary Service, operating out of Brightwells Gostrey Centre in Farnham transitioned on 16 January 2017 to a freshly cooked nutritious meal service delivered through local organisations in the 4 key habitant areas of Waverley.

The purpose of this report is to provide an update to the committee on the new service, highlighting the key successes and challenges faced through the transition and the future direction of the service.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Community Wellbeing Overview & Scrutiny Committee considers the findings of this report, and provides comment or feedback to officers.

The Committee received an update on the delivery of the Community Meals Service. This service had previously been delivered by the Royal Voluntary Service operating out of the Brightwells Gostrey Centre in Farnham. The report highlighted the key successes and challenges faced through the transition and the future direction of the service. 

The Committee noted that the new meals service had been gone from strength to strength since the transition on 16 January 2017. Meals were currently delivered to 152 people across Waverley. Clients needed to meet an agreed universal eligibility criteria, and most clients only took up the service when they were at their most vulnerable. Inevitably, there was a high turnover as customers moved into care homes or died.

In a 12 month period (1 April 2017 to 31 March 2018) the new meal service delivered:

·         23,836 hot meals

·         1,366 frozen meals

·         2,184 teas

The Committee was pleased that the service was working well but was concerned with the reliance on volunteers for staffing. Members were reassured that while the service was delivered by volunteers it was professionally managed, with a focus on expanding the pool of volunteers supporting the service to ensure its future. Officers welcomed the suggestion that schools might be used as distribution centres and welcomed any further ideas to support the service.

To receive a report regarding the Memorial Hall Project and monitor of Hall usage (to follow).

This item was deferred to the next meeting.

The work programme was tabled and noted. It was noted that there would be an induction programme for new councillors following the elections, including an introduction to overview and scrutiny; and an introduction to the remit of the committee at the start of the June meeting.