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Agenda and minutes

Venue: Committee Room 4, Town Hall, Upper Street, N1 2UD. View directions

Contact: Ola Adeoye  020 7527 3044

Items
No. Item

258.

Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

None.

259.

Declarations of Substitute Members

Minutes:

There were no declarations of substitute members.

260.

Declarations of Interest

If you have a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest* in an item of business:

§  if it is not yet on the council’s register, you must declare both the existence and details of it at the start of the meeting or when it becomes apparent;

§  you may choose to declare a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest that is already in the register in the interests of openness and transparency. 

In both the above cases, you must leave the room without participating in discussion of the item.

 

If you have a personal interest in an item of business and you intend to speak or vote on the item you must declare both the existence and details of it at the start of the meeting or when it becomes apparent but you may participate in the discussion and vote on the item.

 

*(a)     Employment, etc - Any employment, office, trade, profession or vocation carried on for profit or gain.

(b) Sponsorship - Any payment or other financial benefit in respect of your expenses in carrying out duties as a member, or of your election; including from a trade union.

(c) Contracts - Any current contract for goods, services or works, between you or your partner (or a body in which one of you has a beneficial interest) and the council.

(d) Land - Any beneficial interest in land which is within the council’s area.

(e) Licences- Any licence to occupy land in the council’s area for a month or longer.

(f) Corporate tenancies - Any tenancy between the council and a body in which you or your partner have a beneficial interest.

 (g) Securities - Any beneficial interest in securities of a body which has a place of business or land in the council’s area, if the total nominal value of the securities exceeds £25,000 or one hundredth of the total issued share capital of that body or of any one class of its issued share capital. 

 

This applies to all members present at the meeting.

 

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

261.

Public Questions

For members of the public to ask questions relating to any subject on the meeting agenda under Procedure Rule 70.5. Alternatively, the Chair may opt to accept questions from the public during the discussion on each agenda item.

Minutes:

None

262.

Minutes of Previous meeting pdf icon PDF 106 KB

Minutes:

Members were informed that the Biodiversity Action Plan is being considered by the Executive Member for Environment and Transport.

With regard to the questions on the ethnicity of children participating in the summer reading challenge and the number of apprentices supported into fulltime employment, members were advised that responses were with the Director Employment, Skills and Culture for sign off.

 

 

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the meeting held on 22 January be confirmed as an accurate record of proceedings and the Chair be authorised to sign them.

263.

Chair's Report

Minutes:

The Committee has two meetings left to consider the scrutiny recommendations.  Some draft recommendations will be available at the next meeting but recommendations in relation to the Park for Health part of the scrutiny will be depend on the outcome of the Heritage Lottery Fund application which will be known in late March.
 
Members were reminded of forthcoming visits –to the Plant Nursery at the Hollins & McCall Estate on Thursday 28 February, the recycling workshop on Friday 8 March at 1 Cottage Road and on Friday 22 March, the visit to Penn Road, to observe the friends group that won the Islington Bloom Award in 2018.

 

In response to an enquiry about the transport strategy, the Chair requested that the Committee clerk liaise with officers so that it can be discussed at the meeting in May.

 

264.

Parks for Health

Minutes:

The Committee received a presentation on social prescribing from Dr Katie Coleman, Clinical Lead of NCL Personalisation about Social Prescribing. In addition, the Chair of the Caledonian Park Friends Group shared her experience of being involved in a friends group and the health benefits arising from the use of open and green spaces. The Parks and Open Spaces Manager contributed to the item. The following points were made:

·         Members were reminded about the value of parks in terms of improving the health and wellbeing of its residents. In the challenging economic climate, it is important that the Service maximises and promotes the benefits of the parks for its residents. It is not a statutory service which would give it some protection from cuts.

·         Park Services bid for Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) Accelerated project which aims to transform park services into a health and welfare service.

·         The HLF bid is a joint bid with Camden Council. A key part of the project would require working in conjunction with the health sector to establish core links and partnerships. If the bid was successful, l the service would have funding for the transformation.  If it was not, the transformation would be a slower process.

·         Dr Coleman informed the meeting that the NHS is promoting Social Prescribing (SP) which refers people with social, emotional or practical needs to activities or community groups.  There is a recognition by GPs that there is an increasing level of complex, long term ailments which requires a different approach.  Up to 70% of patient appointments are at least partly the result of socioeconomic issues and would be better treated with a non-medical intervention.

 

·         Social prescribing could be described as a ‘listening and connecting’ service where help is given to patients to build on their own personal strengths.   The link worker introduces them to their own local resources of which parks could be of one of the resources available.

·         Members were advised that although it is too early give a definitive analysis of the benefits, SP is gaining traction and is included in the NHS England Long Term Plan and Universal Personalised Care Model 2019 which stipulates that GP practices should come together as a network employing a social prescribing worker.

 

·         Dr Coleman advised that evidence indicates that SP results in improvements to both the emotional and physical wellbeing of residents.  The link worker could direct them to the appropriate service or support including for financial advice, education training, volunteering and physical activity. 

·         Following consultation with the patient, the link worker, trained with both the skills and knowledge, would be able to produce a personal health care plan that addresses long term needs such as facilitating a park run, referring them to knitting classes or signposting them to the appropriate benefit support.

·         In response to a question, Dr Coleman acknowledged that the link worker in his or her capacity will plug the gaps that presently exists in the current system through developing this person-centred care.  What SP aims to do  ...  view the full minutes text for item 264.