Agenda item

The Committee considered the Joint Report of the Corporate Director of Neighbourhoods and Climate Change and Corporate Director of Adult and Health Services that presented the draft refresh of the Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy (JLHWS) for comment. A copy of the draft strategy was circulated with the agenda (for copy of report, see file of minutes).

The Interim Strategic Manager - Partnerships was in attendance to deliver a presentation that provided details of the draft Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy (JLHWS). This noted the focus of the work of the County Durham Health and Wellbeing Board’s; four priority areas: Making smoking history; Enabling healthy weight for all; Improving mental health, resilience and wellbeing; Reducing alcohol harms, as well as concentrating on the impact of Inequalities and the wider determinants of health which contribute to our overall health and wellbeing. The Role of Health & Wellbeing Board and how it influences resources across the system was also noted. (for copy of presentation, see file of minutes).

Mrs A Gunn referred to the vision statement and what stood out was tackle unfair difference in the health of wider contributor factors that she misunderstood when read in isolation compared to some of the information later in the report and asked the Officer when producing the strategy to look at the wording carefully and provided details of some of the wording used. She then referred to engagement and consultation and asked how much coverage they were achieving of the population and was there a statistical representation. She referred to tobacco and alcohol and asked if there were any emerging issues with illegal substances, healthy weight focus on food and was a big drive on movement and tying this in, quality of school meals that can have a significant impact on children’s health in particular in deprived areas where they rely on that food for nutrition. She asked for further information on suicide and the dynamics.

The Interim Strategic Manager – Partnerships responded that they had worked with the community champions around the wording used so it was easy to understand, and that wording had already been amended as part of consultation feedback. With regard to the representation for the consultation, she advised that they had shared with a number of partners, for comment, including, Area Action Partnerships, VCS Organisations, the Poverty Action Steering Group, Youth Council and Investing in Children but she did not have statistical figures on the consultation responses but when they were developing the Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy, they took the views of those representatives who had been involved throughout the process. She then referred to the four areas and their detailed plans that had been developed through sub-groups of the Health and Wellbeing Board such as the tobacco control alliance and the healthy weight alliance. With regard to suicide more detail was in the partnership plan that supported the strategy and stated that more detailed work was in the action plans.

Ms R Evans indicated that what was said was more adult based rather than children and young people based, and they wanted to look to the future and have a healthy population in the future. She then referred to smoking and that there was no mention of vaping and indicated that there was a lot in the press about young people taking up vaping and were becoming hooked and was becoming a mental health issue. In the older population people who had been smoking a long-time vaping improved their health, but she was not sure this was the case for a young person. The healthy weight was more about what you eat than activity and there were opportunities to get people moving such as access to swimming through schools that had been impacted due to COVID, she commented that schools were key to get children moving and were a key partner.

The Interim Strategic Manager - Partnerships responded that the sub-groups were established, and a lot of work was underway and gave an example of the tobacco control alliance where vaping was included as one of their actions and that the focus of healthy weight was through the life course. She commented that the groups had action plans in place and the strategy was an opportunity to review those and add anything extra or add value. She stated that she would ensure that the comments were picked up.

Councillor C Hunt asked how long the waiting times were for alcohol services and how they were moving forward and commented that they required more information on vaping as children have started smoking after vaping as a means of being trendy and should be high on the agenda.

The Interim Strategic Manager - Partnerships stated that she would find out the waiting times for alcohol services and feed this back to the committee. She indicated that at the end of March the Health & Wellbeing Board had a development session on vaping and she could share this information with the committee.

Councillor A Sterling indicated that she would like to see a bigger commitment into looking into vaping properly as huge numbers of children were taking up vaping that was socially acceptable and normal. The Interim Strategic Manager - Partnerships responded that she would take this back to Public Health Colleagues.

Councillor P Jopling referred to the difference between the success they have had with smoking and non-success with alcohol and obesity and commented that the increase in alcohol and obesity run in line with the increase in takeaways and the abandonment of alcohol regulations. She stated that the legislation needed to be changed where you cannot buy drink at every shop, but she was worried how successful the Council were going to be with the easy access and temptation available. She continued that obesity and alcohol were linked to mental health and was not sure if they could make a significant difference.

The Interim Strategic Manager - Partnerships responded that they were working closely with colleagues in spatial development and the County Durham Plan with regard to hot food takeaways to ensure they had planning restrictions on takeaways, particularly in more deprived areas and near schools. There was also work progressing to restrict the advertising of foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar on Durham County Council platforms.

Councillor R Charlton-Laine indicated that she would like to see more emphasis on energy drinks, and in her school, they confiscated more energy drinks than vapes. She continued that children were spending their lunch money on energy drinks and when confiscated were not eating or drinking anything and would like to see energy drinks included in the strategy.

The Interim Strategic Manager - Partnerships responded that she would take this back to colleagues.

Councillor O Gunn indicated that Mrs Gunn had mentioned in a previous meeting about the use of the word unfair which she supported and would again as many other words could be used such as inequitable. She then referred to page 30 of the pack in relation to the conditions in which we are born, grow, live, work and age have a greater impact on health outcomes and stated that there should be an addition of government policies, government action and government funding which had a great impact on the conditions described in the report and had a huge impact on health outcomes. She agreed that the strategy was adult based, there was mention of access to a good education and she thought they were moving more forward in terms of the inclusion of children and young people in all the issues in relation to good healthy outcomes but access to a good education was the only thing she could see. With regard to consultation and that sectors of communities do not engage with consultations and if they wanted to reach those sectors then they needed to include voluntary organisations, town and parish councils, schools and family hubs and if they did not include these, they were ignoring a sector of communities which are important and who health and inequalities impact on the most.

The Interim Strategic Manager - Partnerships indicated that she would take back the comments on the wording of the strategy and stated that when they spoke to the community champions, they did not like the word inequitable and thought it was not plain English but could look at this again. With regard to consultation, the town and parish councils were included in the consultation exercise. The development of the action plans that support the delivery of the strategy would also be subject to consultation and coproduction with service users in those particular areas.

Councillor O Gunn responded that it was communities where voluntary organisations take the role and support communities where those sectors of the community do not engage in consultation.

In response to questions on advertising vaping products and hitting adults who were purchasing alcohol for children the Interim Strategic Manager - Partnerships responded that she would speak to Public Health Colleagues and the Lead Officer for drugs and alcohol.

Councillor S Deinali asked if any work had been done promoting a positive healthy weight and positive mental health and asked what work had been done to ensure that promoting a positive healthy weight does not impact on mental health in terms of body image.

The Interim Strategic Manager - Partnerships responded that healthy weight and mental health colleagues worked closely together to ensure that there would be no detrimental impact in another area.

Mrs A Gunn referred to the impact the Council could make through school meals and how providers got around this by saying that they offered a healthy meal option and asked what the uptake was of the healthy food and asked if this was monitored.

The Interim Strategic Manager - Partnerships responded that she would feed this back to colleagues.

Resolved: (i) That the report and presentation be noted.

(ii) That Members comments be incorporated into a formal response to the Health and Wellbeing Board.