Agenda for Adult Social Care & Housing Overview & Scrutiny Committee on Thursday, 7th May, 2009, 4.00pm

Procedural Business PDF 60 KB

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(a)  Declaration of Substitutes – Where Councillors are unable to attend a meeting, a substitute Member from the same Political Group may attend, speak and vote in their place for that meeting.

 

(b)  Declarations of Interest by all Members present of any personal interests in matters on the agenda, the nature of any interest and whether the Members regard the interest as prejudicial under the terms of the Code of Conduct.

 

(c) Exclusion of Press and Public - To consider whether, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted, or the nature of the proceedings, the press and public should be excluded from the meeting when any of the following items are under consideration.

 

      NOTE:  Any item appearing in Part 2 of the Agenda states in its heading the category under which the information disclosed in the report is exempt from disclosure and therefore not available to the public.

 

          A list and description of the exempt categories is available for public inspection at Brighton and Hove Town Halls.

Minutes:

 

77.       PROCEDURAL BUSINESS

 

77A.    Declarations of Substitutes

 

77.1   Councillor David Smart was substitute for Councillor Dawn Barnett.

 

77B.    Declarations of Interest

 

77.2    There were none.

 

77C.    Declarations of Party Whip

 

77.3    There were none.

 

77D.    Exclusion of Press and Public

 

77.4    In accordance with section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, it was considered whether the press and public should be excluded from the meeting during the consideration of any items contained in the agenda, having regard to the nature of the business to be transacted and the nature of the proceedings and the likelihood as to whether, if members of the press and public were present, there would be disclosure to them of confidential or exempt information as defined in section 100I (1) of the said Act.

 

77.5    RESOLVED – That the press and public be not excluded from the meeting.

 

 

Minutes of the previous meeting PDF 81 KB

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Minutes:

78.1    RESOLVED - That the minutes of the meeting held on 5 March 2009 be approved and signed by the Chairman.

 

Chairman's Communications

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Minutes:

79.1    The Chairman said that the Overview and Scrutiny Commission had approved the setting up of the proposed Select Committee into dementia services. The Select Committee would be a piece of joint working between the Adult Social Care and Housing Overview and Scrutiny Committee and the Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee. The membership of the Committee would be Councillors Dawn Barnett, Pat Hawkes, Averil Older and Georgia Wrighton, with a co-optee from the Local Involvement Network.

 

79.2    The Chairman explained the format of today’s Committee, which was focussing on Learning Disabilities and the ‘Valuing People Now’ agenda. There would be a DVD explaining ‘Valuing People Now’ followed by the opportunity for Committee members to attend five themed stalls, each of which would explain a strand of work from ‘Valuing People Now’.

 

79.3    The Chairman said that the catering for today’s Committee had been provided by Feast, a service staffed by Buckingham Road Day Centre service users; refreshments included a wide array of homemade biscuits (please contact Liz Evans at Buckingham Road Day Centre for further information). The Chairman thanked everyone for their work in providing the refreshments to the Committee.

 

79.4    At the end of the Committee meeting, the Chairman explained how the information that Members had gained in the Committee would be used. The Learning Disability Partnership Board’s Action Plan would be ready for consultation in autumn. Iit would be added to the agenda for the September Adult Social Care and Housing Overview and Scrutiny Committee so that Members could feed their comments into the action plan.

 

 

 

 

Public Questions

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No public questions have been received.

 

Minutes:

80.1    There were no public questions.

Letters & Notices of Motion from Councillors

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No letters or Notices of Motion have been received.

 

Minutes:

81.1    There were no letters or Notices of Motion from Councillors.

Overview of Learning Disability Services & 'Valuing People Now' DVD

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Presentation from the Manager of the Community Learning Disability Team, followed by ‘Valuing People Now’ DVD and members’ questions.

Minutes:

82.1    The Committee members viewed a DVD explaining ‘Valuing People Now’ which is central government's strategy for improving the lives of people with learning disabilities, their families and carers.

Themed Stalls

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There will be five themed stalls including:

 

‘A Place to Live’;

‘Healthy Lives’;

‘Taking Part in the City’;

Making it Happen’; and

‘Speaking Out’

Minutes:

83.1    The Committee attended five themed stalls:

 

83.2    Healthy Lives Sub-Group

 

(a)       Members heard that priorities for the group included:

• Implementing annual health checks and health action plans for people with a learning disability in the city
• Improve the experience of using hospital services for people with a learning disability
• Improve the collection of information about the health of people with a learning disability in the city
• Making sure people with a learning disability have good access to health promotion information and services
• Use the Green Light Toolkit to make sure people with a learning disability can use mental health services when they need them
• Make sure that other primary care and community health services are accessible to people with a learning disability
• Make sure people with a learning disability get good access to cancer screening services
• Implement the health priorities from Valuing People Now

 

(b)       In terms of implementing Health Checks and Health Action Plans, members heard that

• 37 out of 47 GP practices can do health checks and health action plans for people with learning disabilities
• 250 people that work in GP practices have had training about learning disabilities from the Health Facilitator
• GP practices have been able to identify more people who are eligible for a health check: 697 in January 2008, 873 in January 2009
• 93% of people with a learning disability known to a GP practice can access a health check and health action plan
• The health checks have helped to identify new health needs in individuals with a learning disability e.g. continence problems, poor oral health, high blood pressure, poor foot health, weight problems, diabetes
• Workshops are available for staff and family carers on ‘Being a Health Supporter’
• Local service users made a DVD that is used in the training for GP practices
• Staff and service users have said they think their GP practice is getting better at meeting their needs e.g. more flexible with appointments, take more time with people

 

(c)        With regard to ‘Green Light for Mental Health’, members heard that:

• Funding has been agreed for a part time learning disability and mental health nurse to work in recovery services
• A care pathway will be developed for people with a learning disability to access mainstream mental health services
• There will be shared learning and training for nurses in mental health and learning disability teams
• Information will be available for staff in mental health in-patient services to help them provide a good service.

 

(d)       With regard to Improving People’s Experiences of Hospital Services, members heard that:

• A working group is in place, consisting of staff from the Brighton & Sussex University Hospitals Trust and staff from the Community Learning Disability Team.
• A policy has been written that sets out what should happen when someone with a learning disability uses any of the Hospital Trust services.
• A team of two Learning Disability Liaison Nurses has been in place since January 2009 to work in Brighton & Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust services (including Royal Sussex County, Eye Hospital, Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital, Princess Royal Hospital, Hurstwood Park, Brighton General and Hove Polyclinic)
• Their role includes education & training, providing specialist guidance and advice, supporting discharge planning & multi-disciplinary working, capacity to consent and holding a small community caseload of people with complex health needs.
• A network of Learning Disability Link Nurses is being set up. They will receive training from the liaison nurses and will share education with colleagues.
• The Hospital Communication Book - each ward in the hospital will be given one of these to use with people who have a learning disability.                                   
• The Traffic Light Assessment - the booklet will be kept by people with a learning disability and brought into hospital at each visit, for staff at the hospital to see and use.
• The Brighton Food Book - a new book that local hospital dieticians and the Liaison Team are making together. It will have photos of all the different food and drinks people can have at the hospital to make choices easier.

 

83.3    Housing for People with Learning Disabilities

 

(a)       Members heard that the National Strategy – ‘Valuing People Now’ included a number of priorities:

• People should know about their housing rights
• People should know the full range of housing options
• We should promote home ownership and tenancies
• We should collect better information about housing need
• We should offer support to people to access housing
• We should consider people’s cultural needs in relation to housing

 

(b)       Members heard about the Brighton & Hove Learning Disability Commissioning Strategy, which includes:

• Increase the options people have, with more extra care, supported living, adult placements and floating support

• All new services to have some accessible units
• Improve information on housing options for people with learning disabilities, making key information available in accessible versions
• Work with services to improve how they meet peoples needs and improve value for money
• Develop the opportunities for people with learning disabilities to learn the skills they need to live more independently
• Make sure that carers are involved in making plans and can access support and information

 

(c)        With regards to Brighton & Hove’s local achievements in housing, members were told:

• There is a new Housing Options Officer to work solely with people with learning disabilities, providing better information, advice and support
• New supported living services (6 units in 2008, 10 units in 2009)
• Individual Budgets being used to increase people’s housing choices
• New services being commissioned for young people and complex needs, plus an Extra Care service in 2009-2010

 

(d)       Members heard about the work of the’ A Place to Live’ sub–group. The sub-group were working to produce:

• Better Information – a local guide to housing for people with learning disabilities LD and accessible information, leaflets and tenancies
• Fair access to housing – reviewing the equality of access for people with learning disabilities and ensuring peoples diverse needs are met
• Working with others – with care managers and providers to help people move and learning from other authorities and organisations

 

83.4    Making It Happen & Personalisation

 

(a)       Members heard about the Learning Disability Partnership Board:

• Valuing People Now makes it clear that Learning Disability Partnership Boards have a vital role to play in the delivery of the strategy.
• Brighton & Hove has an active Partnership Board in place for many years.  The Partnership Board is supported by the council through the Integrated Learning Disability Services
• The Partnership Board has a varied membership including people with learning disabilities, family carers and voluntary organisations.
• Partnership Boards will have to report every year on how Valuing People Now is working locally.
• Our Partnership Board has already been producing annual reports for Joint Commissioning Board and Housing Cabinet Members Meeting.  Copies of the 2008 report were given to the councillors
• Our Partnership Board is putting together an action plan to ensure all citizens of Brighton & Hove will benefit from the objectives of Valuing People Now. 
• More information can be found on the Partnership Board’s website at www.brightpart.org.

 

(b)       Members heard about personalisation of services. There was information available about self-directed support and the Learning Disability self-directed support project

 

Involving family Carers:

• The Carers Centre has recruited two new Carers representatives who are being supported and trained by the Carers’ Centre to be involved in Partnership Board meetings and Subgroups over the coming financial year.  They will join the two existing Carers Reps from Amaze.
• Councillors had the opportunity to talk to one of the representatives and to workers from the Carers Centre
• There were discussions about housing, eligibility criteria and other issues of concern to carers and members received information about the Centre’s work.
• Carers and Carers Centre workers are members of the Partnership Board
• The Centre is hosting ‘Listening Lunches’ for carers of people with learning disabilities

 

83.5    Notes from Taking Part In The City Group & Work & Skills stall

 

(a)       Members heard about the Taking Part In The City Group. 

• This sub group is involved in 5 major priorities:
  • Leisure & Sports
  • Travel
  • Adult Learning
  • Community Support
  • Community Safety
• The main campaign for this coming year is around Hate Crime and Community Safety.  The campaign is being led by the City Council’s Partnership Community Safety Team (PCST) and aims to achieve the following:
  • A strategy and action plan will be developed, agreed by the Learning Disability Partnership Board.
  • Increased awareness amongst citizens of Brighton & Hove about learning disability and hate crime and harassment and how to report incidents.  This will include working with the Racial Harassment Forum and Refugee Forum.
  • Increased number of reports from people with learning disabilities (from current 0 reports) by setting up 6 reporting centres, increase awareness amongst people with learning disabilities and their carers and producing accessible information.
  • Increased number of people with learning disabilities receiving successful support services from PCST.
  • Successful case work through working with police, courts and produce regular reports on numbers, trends and outcomes.

 

• Leisure and Sports are focussing on ensuring that public facilities use ‘reasonable adjustments’ to support individuals with learning disabilities to access the facilities.  The sports club (Special Olympics) is mainly working towards the national games in Leicester in July 2009 where 23 athletes from Brighton & Hove are going. The club is also working towards increasing the number of people taking part in sports and leisure activities to 300 people (in line with general population).  Current known participants are around 50 people taking part in any activities.  A campaign for re-admittance of athletes with learning disabilities into Paralympics is underway and we are hoping to organise something for the International Day of Disabled in December on this theme.  This area of work relies heavily on volunteers for their development.
• Travel Buddy Project has received additional funding and is expanding the numbers of people who can be supported. The project works closely with the City Council’s transport department and the Bus Company and has received awards for the ‘accessible service’ they provide.  This is seen as a good practice example nationally and the project has been visited by other areas. The project also employs people with learning disabilities as co-ordinators.  This area of work relies heavily on volunteers for their development.
• Linking up community safety and safeguarding adults is highlighted in Valuing People Now. This will be explored through the Community Safety Board and the Safeguarding Board.

 

(b)       Members heard about the Work & Skills Group:

• This sub group particularly looks at increasing opportunities for people to gain both paid and voluntary employment. A ‘Together Network’ has been set up representing all organisations involved in delivering and supporting employment to take this work forward.  Representation and leadership by people with learning disabilities is important to achieve the outcomes  This will encourage joint working
• A campaign to encourage major employers within Brighton & Hove to employ people with learning disabilities will be happening.  The City Council, NHS organisations and larger employers such as Amex and Legal & General will be approached.  Best practice around ‘reasonable adjustments’ will be showcased.
• Working with adult learning organisations will be important in achieving skills that will help people get jobs.  Particularly working with City College and Open College for accreditation of skills courses so that people can achieve qualifications.

 

 

83.6    Brighton and Hove Speak Out

 

 

(a)       Two Speak Out service users attended the committee, with support from a Speak Out worker.  Members heard about the work of Speak Out, an advocacy charity for people with learning disabilities.

 

(b)       The service users explained that Speak Out work includes:

 

• Supporting a number of self advocacy groups where people with learning disabilities meet regularly in a friendly and supportive environment. They talk about issues that are important to them and try to find ways to improve their lives.
• Supporting the Big Meeting which happens every 2 months. This meeting is open to all people with learning disabilities in Brighton and Hove. Particular issues are explored and the findings taken to the Partnership Board.
• Making sure that the views of people with learning disabilities are included in how services are planned. The Link group attends the Learning Disability Partnership Board and represents the voices of people with learning disabilities. The Link group and all the advocacy groups also get involved in a range of consultations when the voices and experiences of people with learning disabilities are sought.
• Supporting people through 1:1 advocacy. People with learning disabilities can get an advocate to help them with particular issues that need resolving or some people have a long term advocate called a citizen advocate.

 

Items to go forward to Cabinet or the relevant Cabinet Member Meeting

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To consider items to be submitted to the next available Cabinet or Cabinet Member Meeting.

Minutes:

84.1    There were none.

Items to go forward to Council

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To consider items to be submitted to the next Council meeting for information.

Minutes:

85.1    There were none.