Agenda item

The draft Health and Wellbeing Strategy and accompanying appendices went out for formal public engagement during 28 February and 27 March 2019 on Surrey Says. The intention of the engagement period was for the public to share their views on the overarching principles, target groups and overall ambition of the strategy.

Following the engagement period, we will summarise the responses from the public and stakeholders in a report to be circulated to the Board on 2 April. We will also set out any changes to the board in a paper to be circulated on 2 April for discussion and agreement at the Health and Wellbeing Board meeting. These changes will be based on feedback received during the formal engagement period.

Witnesses:

Justin Newman, Director of Devolution – Surrey Heartlands

Key points raised during the discussion:

1.    The Director of Devolution introduced the feedback from the draft Strategy to the Board and spoke about the engagement period that had taken place, telling Members that approximately 160 online responses and 12 letters had been received. He reminded the Board that work had been done with stakeholders and experts, as well as through the use of the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA), previous surveys and workshops.

2.    The Board agreed Recommendation 1 as set out in the proposed changes to the draft Health and Wellbeing Strategy, namely: “The Health and Wellbeing Board are asked to note the response to the priorities, population groups and level of ambition included within the draft Health and Wellbeing Strategy.”

3.    A discussion was had about Recommendation 2, which was concerned with changes to the wording and layout of the Strategy. The Chairman expressed his opinion that the Strategy needed to be as easy to understand as possible, with normal, plain English being used throughout.

4.    Referring to recommended changes to the section on population groups, the Police and Crime Commissioner questioned whether the Surrey Minority Ethnic Forum had contacted officers about the Strategy and was informed that they had. He also spoke about how pleased he was that illegal drug taking and the associated health impacts had been given attention in the Strategy.

5.    The Chief Executive of Healthwatch Surrey expressed her satisfaction with the draft Strategy and how clearly its aims had been expressed. She then went on to discuss the further engagement needed to ensure that as wide a range of residents as possible were consulted. This would ensure that the Strategy’s priorities and measurements resonated with both the wider public and those who have had direct experience with the Surrey health system. The Director of Devolution agreed and told the Board that the Strategy would continue to develop during the next phase of its implementation.

6.    Recommendation 2 was agreed by the Board.

7.    The Board moved on to discuss Recommendation 3, which was concerned with further work that needed to be undertaken on measuring outcomes for the Strategy. The Director of Devolution explained that the Executive Director of Public Health and Wider Determinants of Health would lead this work through the Surrey Office of Data Analytics, and the Chairman spoke about the need to clearly demonstrate that outcomes were improving year on year. In response to a point made by the Leader of Mole Valley District Council about the importance of involving district and borough councils, the Chairman went on to say that it would only be possible to successfully deliver the Strategy’s aims if constant collaboration was undertaken with key partners throughout the implementation process.

8.    Recommendation 3 was agreed by the Board.

9.    The Director of Devolution spoke about Recommendation 4, which was concerned with the implementation phase of the Strategy. The Board agreed to note the feedback outlined in the report and ensure it was shared with priority leads to help inform the Strategy’s implementation.

10.  Discussion then turned to Recommendation 5, namely: “The Health and Wellbeing Board are asked to note the above feedback and ask officers to share with the appropriate organisations to enable its use in informing future service improvements.” The Director of Devolution explained that a number of pieces of feedback did not sit within the scope of the Strategy but were captured for future reference. The recommendation was then agreed by the Board.

11.  Moving on to Recommendation 6, the Director of Devolution spoke about the feedback that was received but did not result in any changes to the Strategy being proposed. As an example, he talked about the suggestion to split targeted population groups and the belief that it was better to keep those together for the purposes of the Strategy.

12.  Recommendation 6 was agreed by the Board.

13.  The Chairman stated that the feedback was a key framework for moving the Strategy forward. He then then turned to the item’s three main recommendations, with the first two (“Consider the feedback received during the formal engagement period on the draft Health and Wellbeing Strategy” and “Agree any proposed changes to the draft Health and Wellbeing Strategy”) were agreed by the Board.

14.  A discussion was had about Recommendation 3, which was concerned with officers being given permission to finalise and publish the Strategy before the end of April 2019. The Chief Executive of Healthwatch Surrey expressed her concern at the metrics not being finalised and asked what Board Members were agreeing to sign off if there was to be another phase of engagement that would inform those metrics. In response, the Director of Devolution confirmed that in six months’ time the Board would be able to view a refreshed set of metrics, with the feedback gained during the formal public engagement period influencing these.

15.  Recommendation 3 was then agreed by the Board.

Actions/further information to be provided:

None.

Resolved:

The Board:

1.    Considered the feedback received during the formal engagement period on the draft Health and Wellbeing Strategy.

2.    Agreed proposed changes to the draft Health and Wellbeing Strategy.

3.    Agreed for officers to finalise and publish the Strategy before the end of April 2019.