Members are reminded to consider the categories of interest in the Code of Conduct for Members to determine whether they have an interest in any agenda item and any action they should take. For further details, please see the attached note from the Monitoring Officer.

Members are reminded to declare the nature of the interest and the agenda item it relates to. Please note that ultimately it’s the Members’ responsibility to declare any interests and to update their register of interest form as required by the Code.

If in doubt as to the nature of your interest, you are advised to seek advice prior to the meeting by contacting the Monitoring Officer or Democratic Services

No declarations of interest were received at the meeting.

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the meeting of the Health Scrutiny Panel held on 8^th June, 2021.

The Chair advised the Sub-Committee that due to unforeseen circumstances and consequent exceptionally busy demands Members are joining online which means that according to the current formal terms of reference the meeting is not formally quorate and as a result the status of this meeting will be recorded as advisory.  Nevertheless, it was noted that since the Sub-Committee has no executive decisions to take it would not affect the determination of any of the business to be transacted at this hybrid meeting. 

Therefore, it was decided that the unrestricted minutes of the meeting of the Board held on 8^th June 2021 should be agreed subject to formal ratification at the next meeting.

The Sub-Committee will receive a presentation on the impact of Covid-19 on Mental Health and Mental Health Services.

The Sub-Committee received a report that summarised what food poverty is and who is affected by it in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets (LBTH). It specifically highlighted the food poverty needs of older people and low-income families and showcased which food provision is in place for these vulnerable groups. 

The Sub-Committee then heard from Dr Sharon Noonan-Gunning on the Right to Food campaign. The main points arising from the questioning of the report maybe summarised as follows:

The Sub-Committee:

v  Noted that LBTH works collaboratively with stakeholders including the Food Partnership to lead the Food Poverty agenda.

v  Asked what provisions had been put in place to support people who used to use Meals on Wheels (MOW). In response it was noted that there was a range of approaches help with the transition of previous MOW users to alternative options as part of the transitions work that was done in Winter 2019-20 (pre-pandemic).  This included (i) Reablement short term support/intervention to support users with independently managing meal preparation/use alternative options; (ii) Support network assistance via neighbours/family; (iii) Frozen meal/ready meal options via local supermarket / community meal providers e.g. Wiltshire Farm Foods; (iv) Lunch clubs and other community-based meal providers e.g. church groups; and (v) Local restaurant/café/meal delivery options e.g. Deliveroo, Just Eat

v  Asked if there was an information pack for practitioners to use to support older people to look for alternative options. In response it was noted that as part of the MOW closure project a ‘basic’ information pack was created to assist  practitioners in exploring the range of alternative provision and support, this information pack was very much ‘work in progress’ and one of the outstanding outcomes from the project was to explore, with Public Health colleagues, the option to further develop this information pack and look at options to create an online information source for both practitioners and residents – some of this ‘online’ work has already been done in Summer 2021 (delayed due to Covid priorities) and is part of the Community Portal offer in LBTH.

v  Questioned if LBTH supported people who used Meals on Wheels with one off payments for white goods? In response it was noted that as part of the Care Act assessment and strengths-based approaches and LBTH has the option to support residents with ‘one off’ purchases for micro-waves, fridges, freezers where it is felt that this will support the residents to be more independent with meal provision and/or give them greater flexibility with alternatives; this can be done in a range of ways and in some cases can be easier facilitated via the use of a pre-paid one-off card.

v  Noted that the recommendations within the report have been collectively identified from the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) and subsequent engagement and prioritisation from the Food Partnership. The proposed recommendations will be delivered by Tower Hamlets Food which is a partnership of organisations and individuals taking action for “good” food for everyone in the London Borough of Tower  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.1

The Sub-Committee will receive a presentation on food poverty for older people and low-income families.

The Sub-Committee received a presentation that provided a high-level summary of the impact of the pandemic on the mental health of LBTH residents alongside the experience of local mental health services as they have rapidly adapted and developed new ways of working to address the various emerging pandemic trends and look to transform services going forward to meet the ongoing demands and opportunities. Members then participated in open discussion on the challenges and opportunities the Covid-19 pandemic has had on local mental health service provision, including the new ways of working to support the wellbeing of local residents and the future strategic approach to address the forecasted ongoing increasing demand.  The questioning on the presentation maybe summarised as follows:

The Sub-Committee

v  Noted that the presentation had a specific focus on local community, crisis and talking therapies services, which demonstrate the impact across the full spectrum of mental health experiences from common mental health disorders to severe mental illness.

v  Were concerned to note that the combination of social isolation, health fears and financial concerns are causing new mental health problems for many of whilst making existing ones worse. There are significant levels of mental health need in the Borough across the whole pathway from serious mental illness (SMI) to common mental health disorders (CMD), such as anxiety and depression and general mental wellbeing. With (i) self-reported levels of anxiety and depression are the highest in London; (ii) the rate of diagnosis for all mental health conditions is significantly higher for residents in the most deprived groups compared to the least deprived, particularly for post-natal depression and SMI; (iii) the rate of diagnosis for schizophrenia, is three times higher than for residents in the least deprived group; (iv) women in Tower Hamlets are twice as likely to be diagnosed with clinical depression than men, and this risk increases when factors such as low-income and social housing are considered. The rates of SMI are at least twice as high for BAME residents; (v) children and young people are estimated as having a higher prevalence of mental health problems than in London or England; (vi) Tower Hamlets has the lowest proportion in London of residents over 65. Mental health problems in older adults are common and often undiagnosed.

v  Noted with concern that this significant increase is believed to have been caused by factors including people returning to work; schools re-opening; the negative impact of lockdown measures on the mental well-being of local populations; increased public awareness of crisis lines; and reduced opportunities for community mental teams to engage face to face with all service users during the lockdown.

v  Noted that Covid-19 could leave the Borough with an epidemic of mental ill-health that will last much longer than the virus itself e.g. Community Mental Health Teams report that they have noticed an increase in complexity of people being referred and that people are often presenting with multiple social issues such as debt, risk of losing their jobs and home, relationship problems.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.2

With no other business to discuss the Chair called this meeting to a close; thanked all those attending for their contributions and informed the Committee that the next meeting would be on Tuesday, 26 October 2021 at 6.30 p.m. in Committee Room One - Town Hall, Mulberry Place, 5 Clove Crescent, London,  E14 2BG