No apologies for absence were received.

Members are asked to consider whether they have any disclosable pecuniary interests and/or any other relevant interest in connection with any item(s) on this agenda and, if so, to declare them and state the nature of the interest.

Members were asked to consider whether they had any disclosable pecuniary interests and/or any other relevant interest in connection with any item(s) on this agenda and, if so, to declare them and state what they were.

The following declarations were made:

The Head of Legal Services informed the Adult Social Care and Health Committee that no Public questions, or requests to make a statement had been received.

Julie Webster, Director of Public Health for Wirral submitted a report and provided the Adult Social Care and Health Committee with an update on the implementation of the Wirral COVID-19 Outbreak Control Plan to date.  The appendix to the report provided the COVID-19 weekly surveillance Report (25 September 2020).

The report informed that on 22 May the government had asked all councils to develop local COVID-19 outbreak plans. Wirral’s local outbreak plan gave an overview of how Wirral would Keep Wirral Well and could be found on the Wirral Council website:

https://www.wirral.gov.uk/sites/default/files/all/Health%20and%20social%20care/Health%20in%20Wirral/Coronavirus/COVID-19%20Outbreak%20Management%20Plan%20for%20Wirral.pdf

It was reported that the Outbreak Plan set out how this target would be implemented and outlined the three key principles that formed the basis of the Plan namely to prevent, control and manage outbreaks of COVID-19.

Since the publication of the plan 7 priority actions - Intelligence and Surveillance, Care Homes and Schools, High Risk Workplaces, Communities and Locations, Local Testing Capacity, Contact Tracing in Complex Settings, Vulnerable People and Communication & Engagement - had been progressed.  A summary of key progress was provided in the report.

Members questioned the Director of Public Health on a number of matters that included actions relating to Care Homes, Ethnicity and Track and Trace arrangements for Wirral. Further questions followed on the subjects of procedures in respect of asymptomatic individuals attending A&E and actions being taken to tackle the backlog of issues arising from the period of lockdown earlier in the year. The Director responded accordingly.

Moved by Councillor Phil Gilchrist, seconded by Councillor Moira McLaughlin, it was:

RESOLVED – That the contents of the report the progress made to date be noted and the ongoing COVID-19 response be supported.

Elizabeth Hartley, Assistant Director Early Help and Prevention, introduced the report of the Director of Children, Family and Education that provided Members with an introduction to the 5-year partnership strategy, Domestic abuse - No excuse. Appendix 1 to the report contained Domestic abuse – No excuse Strategy 2020-25 and Appendix 2 contained the Domestic abuse – No excuse Delivery Plan 2020-25.

The report provided an overview of the co-production process, strategic priorities, delivery plan, and phased approach to reducing domestic abuse whilst improving support for people affected. The report and strategy were aligned to the priorities of Wirral Council’s Plan 2025:

·  Working for brighter futures for our children, young people and their families by breaking the cycle of poor outcomes and raising the aspirations of every child in Wirral.

·  Working for safe and pleasant communities where our residents feel safe, and where they want to live and raise their families.

Members were informed that in Wirral during the period 01 February 2019 to 21 January 2020, there had been 8,410 individuals known to have been affected by domestic abuse. This included 2,786 who were victims, 2,844 perpetrators and 2,780 children who had been referred to Children’s Services due to being impacted by domestic abuse. These individuals required access to a co-ordinated, accessible and effective support offer, which the partnership domestic abuse strategy would enable.

The report highlighted that domestic abuse was an important issue for all public services, with far-reaching implications and high cost to both the public purse and life chances. A strategic approach to reduce the prevalence and impact of domestic abuse in Wirral required a strong partnership strategy and delivery plan.

Members were further informed that the previous partnership strategy, Zero Tolerance to Domestic Abuse, had been one of a suite of pledge strategies relating to the Wirral Plan 2020, which had now reached its conclusion.

Members noted that there was a requirement to build on the work of the previous strategy with a new approach aligned to the Wirral Plan 2025.

Members questioned the Assistant Director Early Help and Prevention on a number of matters highlighted in her report. The Assistant Director responded accordingly.

Moved by Councillor Tom Usher, seconded by Councillor Samantha Frost, it was:

RESOLVED – That

1)  the partnership strategy ‘Domestic abuse - No excuse’ be supported; and

2)  the partnership delivery plan be noted and endorsed.

Graham Hodkinson, Director of Adult Care and Health introduced his report that provided the Adult Social Care and Health Committee with details of the process for budget setting as a transition year for 2021/22 and described the financial position for 2021/22, which as at Quarter 1 was deficit of £45m, and the actions being put in place to mitigate the gap.

These actions included a 5 STAGE phased approach and included the timeline for the 2021/22 budget setting process when budget proposals were presented to the Policy and Resources Committee for the recommendation to Full Council to set the 2021/22 budget.

Members were apprised that as this was a transition year, proposals had been identified and would continue to be presented to the Committee by Officers. The Committee was however encouraged to identify its own proposals for Officers to work up, if within the timescale, to be included for the 2021/22 Budget. For future years this would become the usual process and throughout the year the Committee would be identifying proposals for Officers to work up for the following years budget. Members noted that a workshop session in respect of the budget was scheduled to take place at the conclusion of the formal committee meeting.

Following presentation of his report, Members questioned the Director of Adult Care and Health on a number of matters as highlighted in his report. The Director responded accordingly.

ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDATION

With the aim of ensuring that an ‘invest to save’ approach to budget setting be taken, an additional recommendation was proposed.

Moved by Councillor Tom Usher

Seconded by Councillor Samantha Fox

‘That Committee wishes to highlight the importance of social care and health services at this particular time. Committee express its support for a budget process that takes into account the statutory nature of these services and the difficulty in making budget reductions without more costly demand pressures occurring subsequently. For these reasons, this Committee will make budget proposals based on “invest to save” principles and delivering our services differently rather than budget reductions, and we ask Policy and Resources Committee to support the decisions of this Committee; and

This Committee is acutely aware of the extreme budgetary pressures on all services and as such proposes that the budget consultation is more widely advertised to capture a greater understanding from all stakeholders’ opinions and concerns.’

Councillor Moira McLaughlin expressed concerns with regard to the proposed recommendation, suggesting a possible alternative in so far as:

‘That Committee recognises the extraordinary difficulties in the producing a budget and also fully understands the demands of statutory services. Through the workshops members will take every opportunity to explore areas and will produce a report which sets out the views of the committee at the appropriate time.’

AMENDMENT TO ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDATION

Councillor Phil Gilchrist suggested a possible solution to address Members concerns by removal of words from Councillor Usher’s initial proposal until the budget workshops had taken place. Councillor Moira McLaughlin agreed that this would be an appropriate and acceptable  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

Jason Oxley, Assistant Director Care and Health, and Commissioning for People introduce the report of the Director of Adult Care and Health that informed that through the development of Wirral Council’s new Governance arrangements and the approval of the Wirral Plan 2025 (currently being refreshed to reflect strategic priorities, as a result of Covid-19) the Authority had committed to developing a budget and performance monitoring framework, which honoured the Council’s dedication to a more accountable, transparent way of conducting business, policy formation and decision making. The Adult Social Care and Health Performance Report Q2 2020/21 was attached as an appendix to the report.

It was proposed that the Performance Framework be modelled on the Covid Dashboard set up at the start of the Coronavirus pandemic. This would enable clear and accessible data to be presented in a timely and meaningful way.

Members noted that there were a very wide range of data sets that could be included in the Dashboard, and it was proposed that the specific selection would be co-created with members to ensure it was of most relevance and benefit to members.

Aligned with this, the Wirral Plan 2025 was currently being refreshed to reflect the Covid-19 situation and emerging Recovery Plans. This Plan would set out what the Council could commit to delivering over the next 5 years. Wirral’s public services: the Wirral Partnership had a shared duty to improve the quality of life for residents and the report set out the ambition for the Borough including its economy, residents and services.

The Director’s report further set out the ambition for:

• A prosperous, inclusive economy where local people could get good jobs and achieve their aspirations.
• A sustainable borough that was not only environmentally friendly but one which played its part in urgently responding to the environment and climate crisis
• Brighter futures for young people and families – regardless of their background or where they live
• Safe, vibrant communities where people want to live and raise their families.
• Services which help people live happy, healthy, independent, and active lives, with public services there to support them when they need it.

The Chair thanked the Assistant Director Care and Health, and Commissioning for People for his report.

Moved by the Chair, seconded by Councillor Tom Usher, it was:

Resolved – That

1)  to ensure that Governance in Wirral allows for open, transparent, and responsive decision making, robust performance and budget monitoring be incorporated to ensure that the individual policy and service committees have sufficient oversight of these areas; and

2)  discussions take place with the Committee Chair and Group Spokesperson in early November, as part of pre-briefing meetings, with the aim to take forward the outcomes of the P&R Committee workshop on Performance and Budget reports, so that they can be further shaped for the purposes of the Adult, Social Care and Health Committee.

Members gave consideration to the report of the Director of Law and Governance that set out the proposed Adult Social Care and Health Committee Work Programme 2020/21 as detailed in the appendix to the report.

The report informed that the Adult Social Care and Health Committee, in co-operation with the other Policy and Service Committees, was responsible for proposing and delivering an annual committee work programme. This work programme should align with the corporate priorities of the Council, in particular the delivery of the key decisions which are within the remit of the Committee.

It was envisaged that the work programme will be formed from a combination of key decisions, standing items and requested officer reports. The report provided the Committee with an opportunity to plan and regularly review its work across the municipal year. The work programme for the Adult Social Care and Health Committee was attached as Appendix 1 to the report.

The Chair informed that in the current unprecedented times, it would be advisable to retain flexibility. A Member that suggested consideration be given to incorporating work to investigate protected characteristics and under represented groups, another noted that improvement into the standards in Care Homes remain a focus.

It was noted that all suggestions would be prioritised by the Chair and Party Spokespersons.

Moved by the Chair, seconded by Councillor Moira McLaughlin, it was:

RESOLVED - That the proposed Adult Social Care and Health Committee work programme for the remainder of the 2020/21 municipal year be noted.

Members gave consideration to the report of the Director of Law and Governance that informed of the procedures and background to the appointment of a Member Champion in relation to matters concerning Domestic Abuse.

At Annual Council on 28 September 2020, Elected Members had approved the new constitution and endorsed the appointment of Member Champions in order that it could benefit from the experience, knowledge and interests of Committee Members in particular thematic areas.

It had been agreed that Council and Committees may approach individual Members to take on a specific role to highlight and enhance an area of that Committee or the Council’s terms of reference:

(i)  The Council or Committee holding the corresponding functions within its terms of reference may appoint a Member Champion from one of their number. This may be the Chair or any other member of the Committee.

(ii)  Where the subject of a Member Champion covers functions across the terms of reference of more than one Committee, the Committees may jointly appoint the Member Champion from either of their Committees’ number.

The report further set out the role of a Member Champion who would become a focus for the Council and Committee, partners, stakeholders and communities.

It was moved by Councillor Tom Usher, and seconded by Councillor Samantha Frost, that Councillor Yvonne Nolan be appointed as Member Champion in relation to matters concerning domestic abuse.

No other nominations were received. It was therefore:

RESOLVED – That Councillor Yvonne Nolan be appointedMember Champion in relation to matters concerning Domestic Abuse.