The meeting of The Care, Health and Wellbeing Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 03 December 2024 received reports on a range of subjects. There were presentations from Gateshead Safeguarding Adults Board (GSAB) and the North East and North Cumbria ICB, and updates on the Tech Enabled Care programme, complaints handling, and the committee’s work programme.

Safeguarding

The committee received a report on the work of the Gateshead Safeguarding Adults Board (GSAB). Catherine Hardman, the GSAB business manager, was scheduled to present the board’s annual report and new strategic plan. The report describes the board’s work, and that of its sub-groups, on:

• Safeguarding Adult Reviews,
• Quality Assurance,
• Exploitation awareness, and
• Learning and Development. The report also contains an update on preparations for a CQC inspection of safeguarding arrangements in Gateshead. The report explains that a key piece of work this year has been the development of the board’s new Strategic Plan for 2024 - 2027, which sets out how it intends to work towards its five strategic priorities:
• Strengthening Safeguarding
• Learning and Development
• Data and Information
• Prevention of Harm
• Involvement and Engagement

The strategic plan was informed by a challenge event that took place in September 2023 at which attendees were asked to describe:

What is working well What is not working well (obstacles, barriers and system pressures) What the 3 priorities should be from that agency's perspective

The report describes the make-up of the board, and the governance arrangements for safeguarding at each of its constituent organisations. It also sets out what the board sees as the aims of adult safeguarding, which include:

• to prevent harm and reduce the risk of abuse or neglect to adults with care and support needs • to stop abuse or neglect wherever possible • to safeguard adults in a way that supports them in making choices and having control about how they want to live • to promote an approach that concentrates on improving life for the adults concerned • to raise public awareness so that communities, alongside professionals, play their part in preventing, identifying and responding to abuse and neglect • to provide information and support in accessible ways to help people understand the different types of abuse, how to stay safe and how to raise a concern about the safety or well-being of an adult • to address what has caused the abuse or neglect

The report also summarises data on the volume of safeguarding concerns and enquiries received in Gateshead, noting that

In percentage terms, 24% of Concerns led to a Section 42 Enquiry. The number of concerns progressing to an enquiry remains lower than both the 2023/24 NE (47.1%) and England (29.47%) averages.

The report goes on to say that:

Work continues to improve the knowledge and understanding of practitioners in what constitutes a safeguarding concern and also in providing a robust process for low-level concerns.

Tech Enabled Care

The committee received a report on the progress of the Tech Enabled Care programme. The report was presented by Steph Downey and Helen Ramsden. It is a wide-ranging report, covering:

• Hospital discharge arrangements
• The use of technology to support people to stay at home
• The Digital Inclusion project
• Telecare, and
• Assistive technology

The report seeks to answer a number of questions about the programme, such as:

• Why does it matter that people have the right support at the right time? • Why is Technology Enabled Care important? • What are the benefits to individuals of using TEC? • What is Gateshead doing to increase the uptake of TEC? • What is the difference between Telecare and Technology Enabled Care?

The report also contains the committee’s feedback on the last update it received on the programme in September. These included asking about the impact of the programme, and whether there was a risk that people with learning difficulties would be digitally excluded.

Mental Health provision at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital

The committee received a report on mental health provision at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. The report, by Angela Kumar and Kirsty Sprudd, was to be presented by a representative of the Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust.

PMIF performance

Cloe Finn and Richard Hall, from the Policy and Improvement team, were scheduled to present a report on performance against the council’s Performance Management Improvement Framework.

Complaints and Compliments

A report on the council’s complaints and compliments for the year 2023/24 was presented to the committee by Kirsty Parsons and Helen Ramsden from Integrated Adult Social Care. The report explains that the council received 318 complaints, and that

The themes of complaint remain consistent with previous years and relate to communication (or lack of), assessment and care planning and charging and finances

Work Programme

The committee received a report on its work programme for the year 2024/25. This included suggestions for topics from committee members and officers.