Agenda item

To receive reports from the Chairs of the Council’s Scrutiny Committees in accordance with Standing Order 36. The reports have been attached as follows:

12.1    Community & Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee

12.2    Resources & Public Realm Scrutiny Committee

Members are asked to note that this session will include an opportunity (within the time available) for Non-Cabinet Members to ask questions of relevant Scrutiny Chair’s in relation to the remit of their Committees.

The Mayor then moved on to deal with the updates from each Scrutiny Committee Chair, reminding members that the time set aside for this item was 12 minutes, with each Chair having up to three minutes in which to highlight any significant issues arising from the work of their Committees.  Once these updates had been provided, he advised the remaining time available would then be opened up for any other non-Cabinet members to question (without the need for advance notice) the Scrutiny Committee Chairs on matters relating to the work of their Committee.

Councillor Ketan Sheth was then invited to introduce the update report on the work being undertaken by the Community & Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee, with the following issues highlighted:

·            Since the previous update, the Committee had met on one further occasion with that meeting focussed on three significant items as well as an update from the CEO of London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust on improvements to sickle cell care and proposed changes in the opening hours for the Urgent Care Centre at Central Middlesex Hospital.  With one of largest patient populations in North West London the Committee had been informed that the redesigned care pathway being offered through the Trust would include a new Acute Hub, a 24/7 triage service, and extended outpatient provision at Central Middlesex Hospital, with the changes aimed at improving patient experience and reducing health inequalities across the borough, which the Committee would continue to monitor.

·            Other issues considered had included:

Ø   Children’s Oral Health with concern raised that despite some progress being made, 43% of five-year-olds in Brent were still identified as experiencing dental decay.  Details were provided on Public Health interventions including supervised toothbrushing programmes, the oral health bus, and educational campaigns however it was noted that systemic challenges remained in terms of national NHS contract limitations, cultural barriers, and access issues. As a result, the Committee were keen to ensure that as strong a programme of outreach continued to be offered as possible in order to accelerate progress.

Ø   Brent’s Period Dignity Project, which members were advised had been initiated as one of the outcomes from the Brent Poverty Commission and had also been championed by Brent Youth Parliament.  The project aimed to reframe period poverty as a dignity issue with support expressed for the provision of free menstrual products being made available across council sites and plans to expand this within school and care settings also welcomed.  As part of the review, the Committee discussed gaps in access for care leavers and culturally sensitive communities, with officers committed to improving outreach and tackling stigma.

Ø   Youth Justice Service delivery, which the Committee were pleased to note had achieved reductions in custody rates and reoffending through restorative justice and early intervention although the focus in relation to Black Caribbean males and mental health needs were recognised by members as a key challenge. Members were also pleased to note the strengthening of preventative work through partnerships with organisations like CAMHS with the Committee continuing to closely monitor progress.

·            Looking ahead, members were advised that the November meeting of the Committee would be focussed on housing, which would include an update on Brent’s response to the social housing regulator findings, a review of progress from the Housing Improvement Board and its independent Chair as well as a focus on safety, tenant satisfaction and homelessness prevention with the Committee’s focus on Housing recognised as key in terms of maintaining transparency and better engagement with tenants.

·            The ongoing and active engagement of the Committee in the work of the North West London Joint Health Overview & Scrutiny Committee Brent, which Councillor Ketan Sheth continued to Chair.  Areas of upcoming focus included Special School Nursing, the future of Place Based Partnerships and dental health Commissioning.

In highlighting the ongoing focus and work of the Committee on evidence-based scrutiny that sought to address residents’ priorities and add real value to policy development, Councillor Ketan Sheth ended by thanking members and officers for their ongoing contributions.

The Mayor thanked Councillor Ketan Sheth for his update and then invited Councillor Conneely as chair of the Resources & Public Realm Scrutiny Committee to introduce the update report on the work being undertaken by that Committee, with the following issues highlighted:

·            The wide-ranging nature of scrutiny activity undertaken by the Committee since the last update, as set out within the update report circulated with the agenda which had included a focus on financial monitoring, funding and support for the voluntary & community sector as well as progress on development of the draft procurement and social value policy.

·            As part of the Committee’s ongoing role in monitoring Brent’s overall financial position a detailed update had been provided on the current quarterly financial forecast.  As part of the process members had been keen to focus on the progress being achieved on the measures introduced to tackle the significant budget pressures and challenges identified in relation to the rising demand and costs for Children and Adult Social Care as well as Temporary Accommodation.  Whilst recognising the ongoing nature of the challenges identified, the Committee had been particularly encouraged by the work being undertaken to address the challenges in relation to supported exempt accommodation and had commended the work undertaken in relation to Children’s Services to invest in early intervention and reduce the reliance on agency staff, with it hoped this approach would be adopted more widely as best practice and the issues highlighted identified as key considerations for the upcoming Budget Scrutiny Task Group.

·            In reviewing progress on the development of the Council’s draft procurement strategy and social value policy, the Committee had examined the current local and national context, existing approach towards procurement, along with key performance data, achievements, lessons learned and opportunities that had informed the rationale for change and consequently the development of the draft strategy and policy.  As part of this focus, members had been keen to consider how design of the strategy and policy had also aligned with key corporate priorities such as employment opportunities, sustainable supply chain and robust contract management in an effort to ensure maximum value for money and social value could be delivered, on which the Committee would continue to closely monitor progress.

·            As part of their focus on funding and support for the Voluntary & Community Sector (VCS) the Committee had been provided with a comprehensive overview of the Council’s funding and support for the VCS, highlighting its impact on the sector’s long-term sustainability and capacity.  The review had also included consideration of the current and emerging needs of the sector along with the scope and distribution of funding and support and the demonstrable impact on both the sector and local communities with an analysis of the Council’s VCS grant programmes and commissioned services to better understand key strengths, challenges, and opportunities for continuous improvement which the Committee had again agreed to continue monitoring.

·            The ongoing focus and work of the Committee in seeking to encourage, where identified as required, change and improvements in the way services were being delivered for local communities across the borough and thanks expressed to members and other key stakeholders for their engagement in the work of the Committee to date.

The Mayor thanked Councillor Conneely for the updated provided and it was RESOLVED that the contents of both reports be noted.

Following the updates provided, the Mayor advised that the remainder of time available would be open for questions from non-cabinet members to the Scrutiny Chairs. The Mayor reminded members of the need to ensure that questions raised were focused on the updates provided or the work being undertaken by the relevant Committee.  Questions relating to the following issues were raised and responses provided, as set out below:

(i)         Following on from the question raised at the previous meeting, Councillor Lorber asked Councillor Ketan Sheth for an update on any further review which had been undertaken in relation to the decision taken by the Northwest University Healthcare NHS Trust to close the hydrotherapy pool at Northwick Park Hospital and in an effort to ensure the Trust was properly held to account on the basis of the rationale behind the decision.

In response, Councillor Ketan Sheth (as Chair of the Community & Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee) thanked Councillor Lorber for the follow up question.  In reminding members of the response provided at the previous meeting, he assured members that the decision remained one which the Committee was aware of and continued to monitor.

With no further questions raised, the Mayor advised that he would move to the next item and thanked all members for their contribution.