Agenda item - Happiness: Brighton & Hove Mental Wellbeing Strategy

Report of Assistant Chief Executive (copy attached).

42.1    The Board considered a report of the Assistant Chief Executive which presented the draft Happiness: Brighton & Hove Mental Wellbeing Strategy.  The strategy was developed to improve mental wellbeing in the city.  The Board were updated on progress to date and the future direction of travel. 

42.2    The report was presented by the Public Health Specialist who provided a presentation with slides.   The Strategic Commissioner, CYPT was present to answer questions.  Members were informed of progress to date and actions across the City.  The key approaches within the strategy were 1) Development of an online resource based on the Five Ways.  2) Champions – a network across sectors, to include elected members.  The Action plan would include 1.  Engagement with partners. 2. Engagement with service users and vulnerable groups. 3. Engagement with the public.  4. Web pages.

42.3    The Public Health Specialist informed members that there would be a more detailed update at the next meeting of the Health & Wellbeing Board.

42.4    Councillor Meadows noted that the report talked about partners but expressed concern that there was no mention of the Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.  Councillor Meadows was pleased to note that 73% of people in Moulsecoomb & Bevendean were happy.  

42.5    The Public Health Specialist replied that officers did want to engage with service users and people with mental health problems.  This would form part of the consultation process. 

42.6    The Strategic Commissioner, CYPT referred members to the triangle diagram on page 26 of the agenda.  This showed how the prevention and wellbeing agenda was fully mindful of the whole range of people in the City.  Officers wanted to engage with the wider community.

42.7    Councillor Shanks referred to talking therapies and mindfulness.  She expressed concern that the waiting times for access to talking therapies meant that people who would prefer to be treated via counselling rather than medication were effectively forced to opt for the latter treatment and asked how this could be avoided.  

42.8    The Public Health Specialist replied that the plan was to have more wellbeing-focused commissioning and to aim to provide an evidence based service.  There would be more rapid access to talking therapies than in the past. 

42.9    Councillor Shanks referred to the ‘Happy’ diagram on page 23 of the agenda and stated that statistics did not bear out that the more affluent areas of the City are happier.  She noted that Preston Park had a percentage of 68%, whereas Moulsecoomb had a quite high percentage.  More research was required to see why some areas are happier. 

42.10  The Public Health Specialist replied that neighbourhood groups will be included in the consultation currently underway.  Their comments will help officers to understand the issues more clearly.

42.11  Councillor Pissaridou asked if the strategy was a first draft.  She felt the role of the Champion for Mental Health seemed vague and she would welcome more detail. 

42.12  The Specialist in Public Health confirmed that the paper was a first draft.  In terms of the Champion, she suggested developing a briefing on what was required.  Councillor Pissaridou confirmed that she would welcome a briefing on this matter.

42.13  Councillor Bowden thanked officers for the report.  He commented that that external factors could militate against the aims of the strategy. Page 25 of the agenda referred to good quality housing, but large numbers of people were on the housing waiting list.  The question of how to contend with government policies and how to include the police into debates were issues he had raised before.  Councillor Bowden stated that he had known people with mental health problems who had not been treated with appropriate sensitivity by the police and he considered it necessary to bring the police on board as partners.  The police were not mentioned in the strategy.

42.14  The Public Health Specialist replied that she would take back the comments about the police and thanked Councillor Bowden for his suggestion.

42.15  Geraldine Hoban stressed that access to talking therapies was a key part of the strategy.  Currently service users were waiting longer than they should to access services.  Plans are in place to reduce these waiting times which are due to a backlog built up under the previous service model.  The service has now been re-designed and re-tendered and is functioning much better, although it will take a number of months to bring the waiting list down. 

42.16  Ms Hoban stated that she would like to see public sector employers sign up to the charter, to help improve the health and wellbeing of public sector employees in the City.  For example, employers could offer flexible policies and ways of working.  

42.17  Zaid Khayal referred to page 18, paragraph 3.6, which referred to the SICK festival. He asked what happened at this event.   The Public Health Specialist explained that this was an arts festival run by The Basement.  She recommended that he looked at The Basement’s website.

42.18  Zaid referred to the circle diagram on page 28.  He noted that this only referred to girls. 

42.19  The Strategic Commissioner, CYPT explained that the chart was trying to draw together those groups who were most likely to report behaviours.  

42.20  Pinaki Ghoshal stated that the chart was not properly explained in the strategy and should be removed.  He felt it was unhelpful and did not fit comfortably in the strategy.  Mr Ghoshal welcomed the strategy but felt it was not clear how it would link up to developments in children’s services.  Early health was critical.  Mr Ghoshal asked how officers were reaching out to young people regarding the happiness agenda.  There was a need to ensure young people were safe and happy.  He did not see that in the strategy at the moment.  There was an agenda about interaction within schools which was very important.  More work was required on these issues.

42.21  The Strategic Commissioner, CYPT said she would take these comments on board.

42.22  Councillor Bowden stated that the strategy rightly identified isolated older people.  He sat on the Older People’s Council and noted that older people often were the last to ask for help.  He would like to see that issue raised in the strategy.  Councillor Bowden raised the matter of carers where lack of respite care was an issue.  He was pleased to see a new strategy in place with regard to talking therapies.  A great deal depended on finances and Councillor Bowden asked how this work would be funded.

42.23  The Public Health Specialist explained that the CCG were asking Age UK and the Carers Centre to respond to the paper.  Officers were hoping to get feedback on what they felt were priorities.  The issue of respite was covered by the Carers Strategy rather than the Mental Wellbeing Strategy.  

42.24  Geraldine Hoban made the point that demand would outstrip supply and there was a need to pick up problems at an earlier stage.  Better housing and better work advice was needed.  The best way forward was to keep people healthy in the first place.  This was the only way to stem the tide of growing levels of anxiety. 

42.25  Ms Hoban recognised that the integrated care of frail people would need to include consideration of carers.  Carers were a key part of the model. 

42.26  Denise D’Souza suggested that the final strategy should have a list of who had been consulted.  With regard to the workforce, there was some work carried out two years ago on this issue.  There was no need to duplicate this work. 

42.27  The Strategic Commissioner, CYPT stated that consultation was live and ongoing.  The strategy did not have shape as officers were asking people what they wanted.  There would be a great deal of wide ranging consultation.  The current report was an update and there was a great deal more work to be carried out.

42.28  Zaid Khayal stated that as a secondary student he noted that some children did not correctly fill in surveys.

42.29  The Strategic Commissioner, CYPT explained that this was recognised as an issue with this type of survey, and the raw data was accordingly ‘cleaned’ to ensure that it was trustworthy.

42.30  Councillor Bowden expressed concern that some young carers were completely off the radar.  There were young carers looking after parents.  Councillor Bowden asked what could be done to bring them into the equation.  Councillor Bowden considered that the measures were a bit crude.  There needed to be a more systematic level of measuring happiness. 

42.31  The Strategic Commissioner, CYPT explained that there was a funded project to work with young carers. Work was carried out in schools to identify carers and officers worked closely with them.  There had been a presentation from young carers to the Children and Young Peoples Committee.   A national framework had been adopted for the measures.   

42.32  Pinaki Ghoshal confirmed that young carers had given a powerful presentation to the Children and Young People Committee. He wanted to bring a review of the Carers Strategy to the CYP Committee in the future. They were a hidden group and the issue was complex. 

42.33  Councillor Norman welcomed the Champion role.  He considered that once the Champion was in place, work could proceed and progress made.  The Champion could help to raise the profile of the work.

42.34  Councillor Bowden stated that as Chair of the Economic Development & Culture Committee, he was pleased that the draft strategy recognised the role of the arts in the mental wellbeing of the City.  Many cultural organisations in the City had outreach programmes.

42.35  RESOLVED – (1)  That Tom Scanlon, Director of Public Health take a  ‘Champion’ role for Happiness and mental wellbeing on behalf of the Board.

(2)       That the draft strategy be approved and that the Director of Public Health be instructed to bring the final strategy back to the Board at its meeting on 11 June 2014.