Agenda and minutes

To note the appointment of Councillor Myra Michael at the Special Meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting on 5 June as Chair of the Sub-Committee for the Municipal Year 2006/2007.

RESOLVED:  To note the appointment at the Special Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting on 5 June 2006 of Councillor Myra Michael as Chairman of the Sub?Committee for the Municipal Year 2006/2007.

To note the attendance at this meeting of any duly appointed Reserve Members.

Reserve Members may attend meetings:-

(i)                 to take the place of an ordinary Member for whom they are a reserve;

(ii)               where the ordinary Member will be absent for the whole of the meeting; and

(iii)             the meeting notes at the start of the meeting at the item ‘Reserves’ that the Reserve Member is or will be attending as a reserve;

(iv)              if a Reserve Member whose intention to attend has been noted arrives after the commencement of the meeting, then that Reserve Member can only act as a Member from the start of the next item of business on the agenda after his/her arrival.

RESOLVED:  To note the attendance at this meeting of the following duly appointed Reserve Member:-

To receive declarations of personal or prejudicial interests, arising from business to be transacted at this meeting, from:

(a)               all Members of the Committee, Sub Committee, Panel or Forum;

(b)               all other Members present in any part of the room or chamber.

RESOLVED: To note that Councillor Mrs Rekha Shah declared a personal interest in that she was an employee of Brent Council.

To consider whether any of the items listed on the agenda should be considered with the press and public excluded on the grounds that it is thought likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted, that there would be disclosure of confidential information in breach of an obligation of confidence or of exempt information as defined in Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).

RESOLVED:  That (1) in accordance with the Local Government (Access to Information) Act 1985, the following item be admitted late to the agenda by virtue of the special circumstances and grounds for urgency detailed below:-

(2)  all items be considered with the press and public present.

To consider the appointment of a Vice-Chair to the Sub Committee for the Municipal Year 2006/2007.

RESOLVED:  To appoint Councillor Mrs Rekha Shah as Vice?Chairman of the Sub?Committee for the Municipal Year 2006/2007.

To confirm the appointment of Ms Jean Bradlow, Director of Public Health (Harrow PCT), as advisor to the Sub-Committee for the Municipal Year 2006/2007.

RESOLVED:  To appoint Ms Jean Bradlow, Director of Public Health (Harrow PCT), as advisor to the Sub?Committee for the Municipal Year 2006/2007.

That the minutes of the Special meeting held on 28 February 2006, the ordinary meeting held on 21 March 2006, and the Special meeting held on 10 April 2006, having been circulated, be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

RESOLVED:  That the minutes of the Special meeting held on 28 February 2006, the ordinary meeting held on 21 March 2006, and the Special meeting held on 10 April 2006 of the Health and Social Care Scrutiny Sub-Committee (being the predecessor body to this Sub-Committee), having been circulated, be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

To note the terms of reference of the Sub-Committee.

RESOLVED:  To note the Terms of Reference of the Sub-Committee.

To receive questions (if any) from local residents/organisations under the provisions of Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rule 8.

RESOLVED:  That the following question be received under the provisions of Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rule 8:

[Note:  The Chairman of the Sub-Committee responded that as she had played no part in the decision-making, she would forward the question to Councillor Janet Mote, Portfolio Holder for People First, and ask her to provide a response to the question.]

To receive petitions (if any) submitted by members of the public/Councillors under the provisions of Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rule 9.

RESOLVED:  To note the receipt, under the provisions of Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rule 9, of the following petition, which was referred to the Acting Chief Executive of Harrow Council, with the request that it be forwarded to the Chief Executive of Harrow Primary Care Trust for consideration:

(i)      Presented by Councillor Myra Michael, containing 305 signatures, in the following terms:

         “We the undersigned do strongly oppose the closing of the very popular and well attended Cecil Park Clinic in Pinner.”

To receive deputations (if any) under the provisions of Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rule 10.

RESOLVED:  To note that no deputations were received at the meeting under the provisions of Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rule 10.

Robert Moore (Director of Service Improvement, Harrow Primary Care Trust) and Andrew Bland (Assistant Director of Service Improvement, Harrow Primary Care Trust) will be in attendance for this item.

The Sub-Committee received a presentation by Andrew Bland, Assistant Director of Service Improvement of Harrow Primary Care Trust (PCT), which outlined the objectives and progress to date on the implementation of ‘Choice’ in Harrow, including the Choose and Book scheme.

The following points were made in response to questions from Members:

·         although the main purpose of Choose and Book was to ensure the most appropriate use of existing resources, this could also have the effect of reducing waiting lists in certain cases, and of increasing overall patient choice;

·         users would be able to choose the highest quality provider based on freely available information;

·         online referrals could only be made by patients who had been given a unique booking reference number by their GP;

·         Harrow was on track to meet its target of 90% of all GP referrals being through Choose and Book by 31 March 2007. However, educating the public would remain crucial in ensuring this target was met;

·         for the few practices not able use Choose and Book, Harrow PCT would make proxy referrals.

The Chairman requested Harrow PCT to provide information on areas of work currently receiving less spending than Choose and Book at a future meeting of the Sub-Committee.

RESOLVED:  That the above be noted.

Robert Moore (Director of Service Improvement, Harrow Primary Care Trust) and Andrew Bland (Assistant Director of Service Improvement, Harrow Primary Care Trust) will be in attendance for this item.

The Sub-Committee received a presentation from Robert Moore, Director of Service Improvement, Harrow Primary Care Trust, which provided an overview of Practice Based Commissioning (PBC).  The presentation also indicated how patients would benefit from PBC, and detailed the progress already made in Harrow on this matter.

Robert Moore stated that PBC was in an embryonic stage and that there was much work to do, including integrating PBC into other services provided by the Council.  The Sub-Committee was informed that contestability was key to ensuring that services provided represented value for money.  A PBC Governance Manual would be available within three months of the meeting, and this would help regularise governance both within and between different clusters and the PCT.  It was noted that mental health did not yet fall under PBC, but that eventually it would.

RESOLVED:  That the above be noted.

Joint report of the Director of Community Care, and Robert Moore, Director of Service Improvement, Harrow Primary Care Trust.

The Sub-Committee received a verbal update on the direction for Community Services in light of the Government White Paper.  The Sub-Committee was informed that key areas of work would include:

·         a ten year agenda with year on year shifts;

·         improving access to services, particularly mental and sexual health services;

·         trebling investment in the Expert Patient programme (encouraging patients to be the ‘owners’ of their own condition);

·         working with the Council to progress the Patient Integration agenda.

The Director of Community Care proposed that the item be brought to the 13 September 2006 meeting of the Sub?Committee, when a report on the subject would be available to Members.

RESOLVED:  That the above be noted.

Report of the Director of People, Performance and Policy.

The Sub-Committee received a report of the Director of People, Performance and Policy, which set out the background to the development of the Sub?Committee’s Work Programme, various options for its delivery over the coming four years, and possible issues for the Sub?Committee to consider in its work.  It was noted that although this was the Sub?Committee’s first opportunity to discuss the Work Programme in draft form, the matter would also be considered by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, and by Members at the Scrutiny Members' Evening on Tuesday 11 July 2006.

In response to questions by Members, the following points were noted:

·         cross-cutting issues such as diabetes appeared on the Work Programme of more than one Sub-Committee, but the Scrutiny Unit would ensure there was no duplication of work;

·         the Catering Review was ongoing and had implications for both social and health care.

Members were invited to submit their suggestions to the Scrutiny Unit both in terms of the issues they would like the Sub-Committee to address, and the means they preferred to do so.

RESOLVED:  That (1) the above comments on the Work Programme be noted; and

(2)  a further report be brought to the next meeting of the Sub-Committee incorporating more detail with regard to scope, prioritisation and methodology for topics.

Report of the Director of People, Performance, and Policy.

The Sub-Committee received a report of the Director of People, Performance and Policy, which updated Members on the signing of the Local Area Agreement (LAA), its date of operation, and issues within the agreement still to be negotiated with the Government Office for London (GOL).

The Sub-Committee was informed that the LAA included twelve Stretched Targets, which had been identified as representative of the priorities expressed by 90 members of the public at a summit held in 2005.  These targets were areas in which the Partnership intended to perform better than it would without the LAA, and if met, would earn the Partnership a £6.3 million reward.

In response to questions from Members, the Sub-Committee was informed that of the twelve Stretched Targets, nine were already agreed, while the Partnership and the GOL were still in negotiation regarding the remaining three.  It was noted that reaching each target would earn the Harrow Strategic Partnership one twelfth of the £6.3 million on offer.  Fifty percent of the total sum awarded would be used for further partnership work in the areas agreed, while the remaining fifty percent would be given as a reward to the partners involved and could be spent as they chose.

The Sub-Committee was informed that the number of smokeless houses in the Borough would be indicated by the number of households which had signed up to be smoke-free environments.  It was hoped that this would both protect non-smokers from the harm of passive smoking, and encourage smokers to give up smoking.

RESOLVED:  To note that (1) Harrow’s LAA was signed with Central Government in March 2006;

(2)  the LAA came into operation on 1 April 2006;

(3) negotiations were still continuing with GOL on the three remaining stretched targets in the agreement around community cohesion, volunteering and traffic congestion;

(4)  negotiations were still continuing with GOL on the payment of the pump priming grant to be used towards the achievement of the stretched targets in the LAA;

(5)  a performance management system was being implemented to ensure the tracking of the targets in the LAA and maximise the performance of the full performance reward grant at the end of the three years of the agreement.

Richard Milner, Director of Corporate Performance Harrow PCT, will be in attendance for this item.

The Sub-Committee received a report of the Director of Finance and Information, Harrow Primary Care Trust (PCT), which set out the financial position of the PCT at the end of the 2005/06 year, and confirmed the resource allocation for 2006/07.

In response to questions from Members, the Director of Finance and Information stated that the penalty incurred by the PCT for being overspent could not be avoided or reduced as it was a national requirement.  The Sub-Committee was informed that all decisions regarding reductions in services were discussed and approved by the Professional Executive Committee, which was made up of representatives of nurses, GPs, dentists, pharmacists, and members of the Non-Executive Board team.  It was noted that a Director of Recovery had been appointed to assist in the savings recovery plan, and that those posts vacant at the start of 2006 had been removed where possible.  No decisions had been made about future vacancies, although it was confirmed that the workforce would not be increased in the coming year.

The Chairman of the Sub-Committee requested that in future the data be printed in a larger type.

RESOLVED:  That the above be noted.

Jean Bradlow, Director of Public Health (Harrow PCT) and advisor to the Sub-Committee will be in attendance for this item.

The Sub-Committee received a report from Harrow PCT which outlined key facts about flu pandemics, the current situation with regard to avian flu, and the PCT and Council’s responsibilities in planning for a pandemic.  Members also received information on the measures already implemented, including a joint flu pandemic plan across North West London Hospitals Trust, Harrow PCT, Harrow Council, Brent PCT and Brent Council.

RESOLVED:  That the report be noted.

Report of the Director of Financial and Business Strategy.

The Sub-Committee received a report of the Director of Financial and Business Strategy, which outlined the Council’s responsibilities during a flu pandemic, as well as the preparations already in place to deal with such a situation if it arose. In response to questions from Members, the following points were noted:

·         the Council assumed a 50% absence rate from work for several weeks during a flu pandemic;

·         closure of schools would be decided locally in the event of a flu pandemic;

·         the infection and fatality rates assumed in the Council’s arrangements were based on previous pandemics;

·         work had been done on translating leaflets and there were plans to provide a multi?lingual helpline to ensure minority groups would be kept fully informed during a pandemic.

RESOLVED:  That the report be noted.

Richard Milner, Director of Corporate Performance Harrow PCT, will be in attendance for this item.

The Sub-Committee received an update from the Harrow PCT on the Community Facilities Review, which explained the process of consultation, detailed issues that had emerged from the consultation process, and outlined PCT actions in response to those issues.  The Sub?Committee was informed that this report represented the latest position of the PCT, and noted the proposed next steps.

The following points were made in response to questions from Members:

·         there had been a limited response from mental health patients in the consultation process, but if representatives attended future public meetings, their comments would be taken on board by the PCT;

·         the PCT had agreed to provide post-natal classes at a venue convenient for users, after consultation had shown that users would not attend classes if the venue moved;

·         the costs of developing new sites were not met by the PCT but by Private Finance Initiative deals

The Director of Corporate Performance at Harrow PCT agreed to bring back responses and consultation to the September 2006 meeting of the Sub?Committee.

RESOLVED:  That the above be noted.

Jean Bradlow, Director of Public Health (Harrow PCT) and Advisor to the Sub-Committee, will be in attendance for this item.

The Sub-Committee received a verbal update from Jean Bradlow, Adviser to the Sub?Committee on Burns and Plastics at Mount Vernon Hospital.  The Sub-Committee was informed that the Mount Vernon site was becoming unviable due to loss of staff and the nature of the buildings, and that the West Hertfordshire Trust Board had requested that alternative sites be considered.  It was noted that any eventual change would require consultation, and that the responsibility for ensuring this lay with Hillingdon PCT.

RESOLVED:  That the above be noted.

Jean Bradlow, Director of Public Health (Harrow PCT) and Advisor to the Sub-Committee, will be in attendance for this item.

The Sub-Committee received a verbal update from Jean Bradlow, Adviser to the Sub?Committee on wheelchair services in Harrow.  The Sub?Committee was informed that since North West London Hospitals were no longer able to provide wheelchairs, there would be a new service provided from July 2006 based in Alexandra Avenue.  It was noted that users had been involved in the whole of the development of the new service, and that it was hoped the service would improve as a result.

RESOLVED:  That the report be noted.

Nick Hulme, Director of Operations Northwick Park Hospital, will be in attendance for this item.

The Sub-Committee received a presentation from Nick Hulme, Director of Operations at Northwick Park Hospital, which outlined the background to the introduction of Special Measures at Northwick Park Hospital in 2005.  The presentation also updated Members on the current situation in terms of staffing and finance.  The Sub?Committee was informed that Part 2 of the Health Care Commission’s report was expected to come out in the coming months, and that the majority of areas covered in the action plan were now complete.  It was hoped that Northwick Park Hospital would be released from Special Measures by Autumn 2006.  Members of the Sub-Committee were invited to look around the newly refurbished labour suite.

RESOLVED:  That the above be noted.

Report of the Director of People, Performance and Policy.

The Sub-Committee received a verbal update on the Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee for Northwick Park Hospital.  It was noted that the Committee had last met in December 2005, and that consultation had been postponed indefinitely.  Each of the three boroughs involved (Harrow, Brent and Ealing) had retained a mechanism to appoint members to the Committee if required, and all Members of the Sub-Committee had received Strategic Option papers two weeks prior to the meeting.

RESOLVED:  That the report be noted.

Which the Chair has decided is urgent and cannot otherwise be dealt with.

In accordance with Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rule 6.6 it was

RESOLVED:  (1) At 10.00 pm to continue until 10.30 pm;

(2)  at 10.30 pm to continue until 10.45 pm.