Agenda and minutes

The Chairman welcomed the attendees to the meeting of the Harrow Partnership Board.  He reported that Harrow’s National Citizen Service Team had been recognised as the most outstanding Citizen Team nationally which was a tremendous achievement.  Additionally the Queen had visited the borough as part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations.  The event had been a major success and demonstrated the community ethos which existed within the borough.

To note the attendance at this meeting of any Substitute Members, in accordance with paragraph 12.7 of the Harrow Partnership Governance Handbook.

AGREED:  To

(1)               note the attendance at this meeting of the following substitute Members:-

(2)               note the apologies received.

(if any).

Agenda Item 5 – Stronger Together: The proposed Merger of Ealing Hospital NHS Trust and the North West London Hospitals NHS Trust

Howard Bluston declared a personal interest in that he was formerly the Chair of the Health and Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee, was a patient at St Mark’s Hospital and was the Chair of the Patients Forum.  He would remain in the room whilst the matter was considered and voted upon.

Agenda Item 6 – Flash Musicals Compact Complaint

Howard Bluston declared a personal interest in that he was formerly a member of the Grants Advisory Panel which had provided an initial grant to Flash Musicals.  He would remain in the room whilst the matter was considered and voted upon.

Councillor Bill Stephenson declared a personal interest in that he had been involved in some of the negotiations relating to the grant provided to Flash Musicals.  He had taken advice and had deemed this not to be prejudicial.  He would remain in the room whilst the matter was considered and voted upon.

That the minutes of the Board Meeting held on 7 December 2011, having been circulated, be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

AGREED:  That the minutes of the meeting held on 7 December 2011 be taken as read and signed as a correct record subject to the following amendment:

·                    The insertion of a penultimate paragraph at minute item 77 to read: “Councillor Hall expressed deep concerns at the length of time taken and the amount of money provided for the Top Families project”.

Following the agreement of the minutes, an officer reported that in relation to CARRAMEA, the proposals were progressing well.  A significant amount of lottery funding had been obtained which was being managed by the Council.  Additionally Harrow Equalities Centre managers were likely to receive funding for further development.

Report of the Corporate Director of Community, Health and Wellbeing, Harrow Council.

The Board received a report which provided an update on the Health and Social Care Bill.  The Corporate Director, Adults, Health and Well-being reported that the Bill had now become law.  The fine print of the legislation was being checked as there had been changes made by Central Government.

The Corporate Director and Director of Public Health reported that:

·                    In summary the Council had now absorbed some key public health responsibilities with effect from 1 April 2013.  The Council would also retain its responsibilities for commissioning Healthwatch.  Strategic Health Authorities and Primary Care Trusts were being abolished and General Practitioners would now gain significant responsibilities as commissioners.

·                    The public health budget was ringfenced.  Harrow had fared poorly in its allocation.  The main reason for this allocation was attributed to the historic spend of NHS Harrow.  Harrow would be lobbying Government on the allocation.  The Leader of the Council together with London Councils would be making representations to seek higher funding as the final allocations would not be finalised until the autumn.  However it was not expected that this would alter by a significant amount.  The Board had been requested to support this lobbying approach.

·                    Another financial issue was the transfer of Public Health to the Council for which there were costs associated, but no Transition Budget provided by the Department for Health.  The Council were attempting to obtain funds to support this transition.

·                    There was an opportunity to co-ordinate across London and with GPs in sharing procurement and sharing information, in line with the financial constraints, whilst also lobbying government for extra funds.

·                    The Council also had a responsibility to establish a Health and Well-being Board.  Guidance would be issued on the formation of the Health and Well-being boards.  It was expected that the Board would consist of Councillors, Senior officers with the Council, GPs and voluntary sector representatives.

·                    Good progress had been made in the establishment of Harrow’s Shadow Health and Wellbeing Board and it had recently completed a series of learning and development events.

·                    The NHS was currently in the process of establishing Commissioning Support Services to support the Clinical Commissioning Groups.  There was ongoing discussion about the scale of support required.

·                    It was hoped that the Clinical Commissioning Group would keep elements of commissioning support local subject to guidance issued.  It was important that support provided should be responsive to local needs.

·                    PCTs would no longer exist after 2013.  The Portfolio Holder for Adult Social Care, Health and Wellbeing currently attended local PCT Board meetings.  It was important to ensure councillor representation at Clinical Commissioning Groups where decisions were made.

During the discussion on this item, Members of the Board made a number of comments which the officers responded to as follows:

·                    There would be an attempt to keep services as local as possible and for sharing these services if they provided value for money.  The Council and Clinical Commissioning Groups had the same aims and were working for the needs of residents.

·                    The government  ...  view the full minutes text for item 86.

Report of the Ealing Hospital and North West London Hospitals NHS Trusts

The Board received a report introduced by Simon Crawford from the Organisation Futures Programme Board.  He reported that the proposals to merge Ealing Hospital and the North West London Hospitals NHS Trusts had been developed over the last 12 months.  An Outline Business Case (OBC) had been submitted in the Autumn of 2011.  This had been approved and the Full Business Case (FBC) had been presented to NHS London on 9 March 2012.

He also reported the following:

·                    The proposals were at an advanced stage and agreements were being finalised between the commissioners and the Trusts.

·                    If the assurance process was satisfied, it was anticipated that a final decision would be sought at meetings of both relevant Trust Boards on 10 April 2012 before submission to NHS London.

·                    The merger was expected to deliver several successful outcomes including a greater amount of care being provided out of hospital, better commissioning services, minimising time spent in hospital, better infrastructure and benefits to acute care services.

·                    Extensive consultation had taken place on the proposed merger.  There had been consultation with LINks and the 3 boroughs affected and additionally there had been a dedicated web page and email address to deal with providing information and queries.

·                    Comments and responses arising from the consultation had been reflected in the FBC.  The key theme arising from the comments received was that it was universally recognised that there was a clinical case for change.  However there were different ideas around its implementation.

During the discussion on this item, Members of the Board raised a number of queries which were responded to as follows:

·                    There would be regular reports to the Board on the progress of the merger.  For a future project titled Making the Borough a Healthier Place, there would be significant consultation conducted which would be led by commissioners.

·                    The details in the FBC had been studied extensively including the information relating to Finance.  The information had all been universally agreed and signed off.

·                    There were significant financial challenges which were currently being experienced.  However the merger agreement took this into account and made provision for additional resource if required.  It was expected that in the early years there might be deficits but there would be extra resources provided by NHS London.

AGREED:  That

(1)               the report be noted;

(2)               further regular reports be provided to the Board on the progress of the merger between Ealing Hospital and North West London Hospitals NHS Trusts.

Report of the Assistant Chief Executive, Harrow Council.

An officer introduced the report and explained that a complaint had been made by Flash Musicals under the Compact.  The Compact was a partnership document which set out the responsibilities of the voluntary and community sectors and the Council in providing services for people in Harrow.  Whilst the Compact was not a legally binding contract, a High Court had afforded it the status of a ‘document of intent’.

The officer explained that he had conducted the investigation into the complaint as required by the Compact.  The complainant had been allowed to comment on the report and these had been incorporated into the document provided to the Board.

The Harrow Chief Executives had considered the report and endorsed the conclusions of the Investigating Officer.  However they had felt that there should be an appeal to a third party, if the conclusions were not endorsed by the Board.  The report therefore asked the Board to consider the report and whether or not they accepted the conclusions.  If they did not, it was requested that a recommendation was made to the Council as the body complained about.

It was also important to note that the Council’s Estate Services were preparing a proposal to attempt to meet the needs of Flash Musicals.  However the Council’s roles of a Commissioner and Landlord were not linked.

During the discussion on this item, Members of the Board raised a number of queries which were responded to by officers as follows:

·                    The reason for a lengthy investigation report was because it was similar to a forensic investigation.  It was therefore important to set out details of the complaint carefully and ensure that it captured all relevant issues.  Additionally there was a clear lease which provided an onus on Flash Musicals to pay rent and they had no document to demonstrate that they had a Service Level Agreement with the Council in perpetuity.

·                    Comments on providing information to voluntary groups before they signed any agreements with the Council were helpful.  Whilst some voluntary groups were quite well developed, there were some which were relatively new and they could benefit from any extra assistance provided.

·                    Comments regarding the complainant not being kept updated since commenting on the Investigation had been noted and would be passed on to the relevant officer.  The Estates Services had been negotiating with Flash Musicals regarding future arrangements.

During the discussion on this item, Members of the Board made a number of comments which included the following:

·                    There was concern that on a broader basis, voluntary groups were being presented with lengthy documents which they were expected to deal with.  Documents provided by the Council to the voluntary sector should be clear and concise to support the exceptional work carried out by them.  Additionally it could be helpful if the Council provided clear information and advice on any agreements before signature by any voluntary groups.  This would provide more clarity and certainty.

·                    It was important to have all of the trustees of Flash Musicals negotiating  ...  view the full minutes text for item 88.

(i)         Community Budgets (To follow)

            Report of the Assistant Chief Executive, Harrow Council.

(ii)        Partnership Fund Performance Update

            Report of the Assistant Chief Executive, Harrow Council.

The Divisional Director of Partnership Development and Performance introduced the report and explained that the Council on behalf of the Harrow Strategic Partnership had submitted an expression of interest to be considered as a whole place community budget pilot.

Although the Council’s submission was not selected as one of the eventual four pilots, the strategic partnership has asked that partners determine to what extent proposals could be pursued without pilot status.

A number of priorities were provided by partners in relation to how the expression of interest could be taken forward.  However due to limited capacity it was wise to focus on a few of these priorities and ensure that they were delivered successfully.

As a result the following themes had been prioritised for joint work:

·                    Out of Hospital Strategy;

·                    Co location of the Police and Council;

·                    Voluntary Community Sector Grants.

The Chief Executive, Harrow Council expressed that the areas for joint work would allow partners to work together in a more flexible and efficient manner.  There were significant potential financial savings which could be achieved, which was particularly important in the current national economic climate.

The Chairman commented that this was the start of better joint working within the Harrow Starting Partnership.  Outcomes would be achieved although it was accepted that this would not be an easy task.  However these proposals represented a good start.

In response to a query raised by a Member of the Board, an officer reported that the Out of Hospital Strategy would incorporate the North West London region.  However it would also be localised for each relevant individual borough. Initial discussions on this strategy had already commenced and a business case was being developed.  There could potentially be a consultation later in the year.

A Member of the Board commented that the joint work on the Voluntary Community Sector Grants heralded a new positive era of the third sector working in partnership with the Council.

AGREED:  That the proposed action be agreed.

An officer introduced a report which provided an update on progress against projects funded by the partnership.  The officer reported that the report contained information relating to current spend, underspends, overspends and key milestones achieved.

The officer explained that there was a key risk area relating to the reablement project, in that there was an issue relating to a lack of reporting.  It had been agreed by the Harrow Chief Executives that a letter be sent to NHS Harrow to request a timeframe of what would be delivered by the end of September 2012.  If a response was not received, there would then be a request for the relevant monies to be returned to the partnership.

The officer further explained that quarterly reports were available on the Council’s website where the details relating to specific projects could be viewed.

AGREED:  That the report be noted.

The next Board Meeting is scheduled for Thursday 28^th June 2012.

AGREED:  To note that the date of the next meeting of the Board would be held on 28 June 2012.