The Leicestershire Health and Wellbeing Board met to discuss several key issues, including mental health services, dementia strategy, neighbourhood models of care, and pandemic planning. The board was also scheduled to discuss the Better Care Fund, the SEND and Inclusion Alliance, and the Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy.

Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy Review

The board was expected to approve the final version of the Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy 2022-2032 (JLHWS), which had been reviewed and revised in 2025. The JLHWS sets out the vision, priorities and actions to improve health, care and wellbeing and reduce health inequalities, and is required under the Health and Social Care Act 2012.

The JLHWS review was intended to ensure that the priorities and commitments remained relevant. The report pack noted that the recommended changes to the JLHWS 2022-32 were approved at a meeting of the HWB on 25 September 2025, and that the HWB also approved the approach to the next phase (Phase 2) of the review.

The strategic priorities listed in the report pack were:

• Best Start for Life
• Staying Healthy, Safe & Well
• Living & Supported Well
• Dying Well
• Improved Mental Health
• Reducing Health Inequalities
• Health Protection & Emergency Preparedness

The report pack stated that the majority of the strategy remained relevant and fit for purpose, but that refinement was required to enhance clarity, coherence and effectiveness.

Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Joint Living Well Dementia Strategy

The board was scheduled to receive an update on the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR) Joint Living Well Dementia Strategy 2024–2028. The strategy reflects a system-wide commitment to improving outcomes for people affected by dementia. It focuses on prevention and early intervention, timely diagnosis, and person-centred support throughout the dementia journey. Delivery is co-ordinated through local plans for Leicester City, Leicestershire County, and Rutland, overseen by the LLR Dementia Programme Board.

The strategy is built around seven pillars:

Preventing Well, Diagnosing Well, Supporting Well, Living Well, Dying Well, Leading Well, and Monitoring Well

The report pack included a map of the Dementia Support Pathway, and noted that Age UK are jointly funded to deliver the Dementia Support Service (DSS), which is a comprehensive, person-centred support model for people diagnosed with dementia and their carers.

The report pack noted that dementia diagnosis rates in Leicestershire have averaged 64% over the last 12 months, against a national target of 66.7%. Actions in progress to improve this included a one-stop memory assessment clinic trial, and training and workforce development.

Mental Health Place-based Sub-group Progress Update

The Health and Wellbeing Board was scheduled to receive an update from the Mental Health Place-based subgroup on its progress in delivering against the Joint Local Health and Wellbeing Strategy (JLHWS) priorities.

The Mental Health Place-based group also acts as the place-based group for the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR) Mental Health Collaborative. Representation includes members from Leicestershire County Council, NHS Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust (LPT), Integrated Care Board (ICB), the voluntary and community sector, and the district and borough councils.

The priority areas of the Mental Health Place-based group are largely driven by the JLHWS commitments, along with the Mental Health Joint Strategic Needs Assessments (JSNAs) for both Children and Young People (CYP), and adults.

Key elements of the group's delivery plan include:

• Development of an all-age Mental Health Promotion plan around prevention.
• Supporting and enhancing the CYP offer around mental health and wellbeing including the transition from child to adult services.
• Improving health check uptake and follow up support for people with Serious Mental Illness (SMI).
• Improving breast cancer screening uptake in people with SMI.
• Supporting the work of the LLR Suicide Audit and Prevention Group (SAPG) and strategy re-fresh.
• Raising awareness of modifiable risk factors and role of lifestyle in relation to Dementia, prevention, and improving dementia diagnosis rates.
• Addressing the impacts of the wider determinants on mental health and wellbeing; which include employment, housing and gambling harms.

The report pack highlighted progress made in the last 12 months, including the Stop Smoking Service, Breast Cancer Screening, and the Mental Health Friendly Places/Clubs Programme.

The Mental Health Friendly Places (MHFP) initiative is a partnership project that is led by Leicestershire County Council and Leicester City Council. A MHFP is a public facing organisation that has received training resources and support to confidently navigate conversations around low-level mental health and wellbeing.

Pandemic Planning

The board was scheduled to receive an update on pandemic preparedness across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR), summarising current planning activity, key learning from recent national and local exercises, and proposed next steps to strengthen multi-agency resilience ahead of future pandemic threats.

The report pack noted that pandemic preparedness is delivered through multi-agency arrangements under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, with local authorities and NHS bodies as Category 1 Responders and Local Resilience Forums (LRF) providing coordination.

The report pack stated that LLR partners have participated in major exercises (Tangra, Solaris, Pegasus) to test and improve pandemic response.

The report pack also listed a number of risks that persist with pandemic planning:

• Funding mechanisms for PPE, isolation support, accommodation support for homeless people, additional staffing and equipment.
• Sustaining readiness during inter-pandemic periods to avoid capability erosion.
• Workforce fatigue and retention in health and care sectors.
• Building and sustaining public trust, particularly around vaccination
• Addressing health inequalities and protecting vulnerable groups.
• Food, medication and PPE supplies.
• Legal requirements to support some interventions.

Better Care Fund - Quarter 2 2025/26

The board was scheduled to receive the quarter 2, 2025/26 template report of the Better Care Fund (BCF). The report sets out performance against BCF metric targets, spend and activity and statements as to whether the national conditions continue to be met.

The BCF was created to encourage local authorities and clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to work more closely together to plan and deliver integrated services¹.

The report pack noted that the Chief Executive of Leicestershire County Council, using powers of delegation, approved the BCF Quarter 2 report for the NHS England submission deadline of 10th November, 2025.

The report pack included a table showing the BCF metrics for this financial year, the targets and outturns for Quarter 2 where available:

LLR SEND and Inclusion Alliance

The board was scheduled to receive a progress update on Phase 2 of the work of the LLR SEND and Inclusion Alliance (SIA): SEND and Alternative Provision Change Programme Partnership (SEND & AP CPP) and the approach to phase 3 and beyond.

The LLR SEND and Inclusion Alliance (SIA) is a partnership between Leicester City Council, Leicestershire County Council, Rutland County Council, LLR Integrated Care Board, Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust, The School Development and Support Agency (SDSA), Leicester City Parent Carer Forum, Leicestershire Parent Carer Forum (Leicestershire SEND Hub), and Rutland Parent Carer Voice.

The report pack noted that LLR are the East Midlands representative for the national SEND & AP CPP. The programme is in its final phase and will conclude in March 2026. LLR Partners have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to form a SEND & Inclusion Alliance, the purpose of which is to continue to embed the positive initiatives piloted through the CPP test and learn process beyond the end of March 2026.

Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner

The board was scheduled to receive an overview of health-related activities commissioned, grant-funded or provided as part of the responsibilities of the Office of the Police & Crime Commissioner (OPCC) for Leicester, Leicestershire & Rutland (LLR).

The OPCC's statutory responsibilities are:

• To support victims and witnesses
• To prevent and divert from crime

The report pack noted that the OPCC makes a contribution of £111,856.00 per annum to the county's substance use treatment service (provided by Turning Point²). The OPCC additionally funds a Drug Test on Arrest (DToA) facility based in custody suites, whereby offenders presenting with trigger offences (typically acquisitive crimes) are tested by custody officers for use of Class A drugs, and those with a positive result are offered a treatment intervention by Turning Point through the Required Assessment Process.

The OPCC also commissions FreeVa to deliver medium and high-risk support to victim/survivors of domestic abuse and sexual violence. Victim First, provided by Catch 22, delivers support to all consenting victims of crime (including standard risk domestic abuse victims) across LLR.

Neighbourhood Models of Care

The board was scheduled to receive an update on the Neighbourhood actions taking place across Leicestershire, Northampton and Rutland (LNR) and to share the Leicestershire respiratory Story, and the work of the National Neighbourhood Health Implementation Programme (NNHIP).

The report pack noted that in 2025 NHS England published Neighbourhood Health Guidelines regarding the need to move to a neighbourhood health service that will deliver more care at home or closer to home, improve people's access, experience and outcomes, and ensure the sustainability of health and social care delivery.

The report pack stated that West Leicestershire was one of 43 places chosen from a total of 141 applications to be part of the National Neighbourhood Health Implementation Programme (NNHIP). The West Leicestershire footprint includes Hinckley, Bosworth, North West Leicestershire and Charnwood.

The programme will bring NHS care closer to home and provide better support for people with complex health conditions, keeping them well and avoiding unnecessary hospital attendances and admissions.

The report pack included an appendix providing a short story of why respiratory illness has been chosen as a focus for the West Leicestershire implementer programme.