Agenda item

(a) Cllr McHugh to Cllr Woolf, Executive Member for Community Safety:

 

The Casey Report found the Met Police to be institutionally sexist, racist and homophobic. Cllr Woolf, we passed a motion calling on the Met to adopt and implement the Casey review at September Council. What have you done since September to push for policing that is fair and safe for people of all genders, races, and sexual orientations in Islington?

 

Response:

Thank you for your question, Hannah.

 

Since our last Full Council in September, we have been working hard alongside the Met to deliver on our 10-point action plan. I am proud to say we are the only BCU in the Met area to have a 10-point action plan in place with the police, which shows our commitment as a council to be bold and innovative in how we push for policing that is fair and safe for our residents.

 

On action point 2 of the plan, ‘Enhancing Professionalism’, we established the Central Professional Board which will ensure effective grip and governance of all professionalism matters. Dealing with discrimination will be a key priority of the BCU & the Board. This will ensure that our borough is anti-discrimination of all kinds including being anti-racist, anti-misogynist, anti-ableist and anti-homophobic. Senior leadership across the BCU and the Board will deliver visible leadership and daily check ins and role model behaviours that communities of Islington expect.

 

We are also working with Islington’s Young Black Men and Mental Health programme and delivering Cultural Competency Training to enhance knowledge and compassion. Met officers will be trained on taking a Trauma informed approach to Policing.

 

We’ve developed a Memorandum of understanding which has helped to guide us in our relationship and building this work in partnership. Colleagues and I here have also contributed to the Stop & Search Charter Consultation, giving us space to tell the Met what our communities expect from local policing and more broadly how to better engage with residents.

As well as the uplift in neighbourhood policing officers, there has been a commitment to align the locality of police teams to that of the Community Safety team in a North, Central and South Cluster arrangement.

 

Other pieces of work we have been delivering include:

•                 Conversations around the Youth IAG

•                 Recruitment of School Safety Officers

•                 Weekly Walk & Talks

•                 Ward Panel Partnership Promise

•                 Tri-borough work regarding Love Finsbury Park

 

There is a lot of work going on to ensure we create a safer Islington, and I am pleased that we are able to work collaboratively with the Met and other key stakeholders to achieve our ambitions.

Supplementary Question:

Can you commit to ongoing collaboration with the police to enhance trust and confidence, ensuring the safety of the borough? Specifically, can you continue to advocate for increased diversity within the police force in Islington, addressing the urgent need for representation that reflects the population, encompassing individuals of different genders, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and backgrounds?

 

Response:

Yes, I can.

 

(b) Cllr Hamdache to Cllr Turan, Executive Member for Health and Social Care:

 

Could the council spell out the total spend on drug and alcohol services from Islington Council each financial year since 2014, and the percentage of residents who successfully complete drug treatment?

 

Response:

Thank you for your question, Benali.

 

Since 2014, the council has spent between £9.9 million and £7.1 million each year on drug and alcohol services.  In the most recent year, 2022/23, the spend was £9.2 million. This covers the full range of services and help for people with drug and alcohol needs, including treatment and care, social support, prevention and harm reduction.

 

50% of residents successfully complete drug and alcohol treatment, which is similar to London and England averages where successful completions are 51.5% and 50% respectively.

 

Through the new national strategy for drug and alcohol addiction, we are investing in increased capacity for treatment and recovery so that more residents can get the help they need. 

 

We are investing in more street-based outreach with people who are rough sleeping and vulnerable and work with hostels for people who are homeless to support engagement with care.

 

Recognising the importance of wider economic and social factors in supporting people to recover and to live well without drugs and alcohol, we are investing in individual placement support to help people with training and access to employment.

 

We are also working with the local criminal justice system including prisons to improve the transition of people with drug and alcohol needs into on-going treatment and care in the community service. Staff from the Better Lives drug and alcohol service co-located with criminal justice services to facilitate continuity of care into their service.

 

People from African, Caribbean and Dual Heritage backgrounds are over-represented in prison and largely underrepresented in drug and alcohol services.  An additional investment of £150k will support a new, innovative programme called Support When It Matters (SWIM). SWIM aims to proactively reach and support Black men who are in or leaving the prison system and may not have accessed prison substance misuse services. The programme, using culturally sensitive approaches, will support at least 60-70 men to access community substance misuse services this year.

 

Thank you again for your question.  

 

Supplementary Question:

Might we try and quantify the cost to the Council of people not completing these services, and might it be more worthwhile to invest more into these services to help more people out of addiction and save the Council money in other budgets?

 

Response:

Yes Councillor, I agree with you. We are making more investments and I will be happy to share these with you after the meeting via email.

 

(c) Cllr Convery to Cllr Ngongo, Executive Member for Children, Young People and Families:

 

Ensuring that children have the best possible start in life is vital in reducing inequalities and making sure that every single child can start school healthy and is not limited in reaching their potential. How is the Council using family hubs to ensure parents and children access the best wellbeing and developmental support in the crucial early years?

 

Response:

Thank you for your question, Paul.

 

Family Hubs give us the opportunity to enhance wellbeing and developmental support in the early years including during the crucial perinatal period through the Family Hub Start for Life offer delivered through Bright Start.

 

The existing Bright Start integrated health and early childhood partnership approach has enabled us to build quickly on our current offer to target support and services that evidence shows have the most long-term impact for those that would benefit the most whilst ensuring universal access means every child and their family benefits from the best start in life. The single point of access through the physical hubs and online platform means we are able to connect families with the right help from the right people in the right way.

 

Following a recent visit to Family Hub Central at New River Green Childrens Centre with DfE and DHSC representatives, Dame Andrea Leadsom the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health, Start for Life and Primary Care gave feedback on how impressive the strength of the integrated partnership across Bright Start was. They confirmed how this has given Islington a strong base from which to deliver the Start for Life offer. In addition, professionals demonstrated high levels of expertise and knowledge about the programme and how universal services have long lasting impact for children’s learning and development.

 

Family Hubs give us further opportunity to close the inequality gap through increased reach to global majority families and those with SEND as well as targeted parenting programmes for specific communities e.g., Somali and Turkish Incredible Years programmes. Our enhanced Family Hubs offer includes more opportunities for early identification of need, expanding infant feeding peer support and more breast feeding welcome venues across Islington, a greater parent-infant relationships and perinatal mental health offer including increasing the number of fathers supported by the Parent Baby Psychology Service, targeted home learning and additional communication and language support by speech therapists for those children most impacted by Covid so their developmental needs can be supported before they start school and parent support to build resilience in all families including an increase in access to evidence based parenting programmes.

 

Thank you again for your question.

 

Supplementary Question:

Can we plan to expand the family hub provision to encompass more of the council's children's centres, reframing the modern Sure Start as not just specialized targeted services, but an integral component of comprehensive early years provision within the entire system of state education in our borough? This approach, echoing the success of the past, could ensure that all children in our borough not only survive but thrive, receiving the best possible start in life.

 

Response:

We are fully committed to serving our children, and that's why we prioritise Children's Services. In response to your question, we're currently assessing where the gaps are and exploring what more we can do. Despite the challenges of austerity, we are actively advocating for additional funding from the government. We understand the importance of early investment in mental health for our children, and we are determined to secure more resources to better serve our local community. While the budget constraints pose challenges, we continue to send a strong message to the government, urging them to allocate more funds to ensure the well-being of our local pupils.

 

(d) Cllr Chapman to Cllr Bell-Bradford, Executive Member for Inclusive Economy, and Jobs:

 

Islington is filled with diverse organisations, making the borough a melting pot of opportunity for local people, however – these opportunities are not always accessed equally. What is the Council doing to ensure that employment opportunities are accessible to everyone?

 

Response:

it's clear that opportunities are not equally accessed in our borough. Drawing inspiration from successful community wealth-building strategies in places like Preston and Cleveland, I've focused on prioritising opportunities to bring about positive change. Residents in areas like Bunhill, living in the shadow of the City, emphasise the lack of access to opportunities. Over the past decade, our community wealth-building strategy aims to tackle this issue head-on.

 

To give you a glimpse of our interventions, we're running impactful programs to level the playing field, such as getting women apprentices onto the Holloway prison site. A dedicated staff member is working towards bringing 50 apprentices, specifically women, to work on the site. Our Lift program directly engages with young working-class individuals, those with disabilities, and women residents, placing them in high-growth sectors for long-term job prospects. Collaborating with anchor institutions ensures a commitment to hiring Islington residents and lowering barriers to job opportunities.

 

We've also launched a childcare bursary scheme to support mothers in re-entering the workforce. Our collaboration with Isaacs, a specialist team assisting those with disabilities, involves working directly with employers and employees, creating dedicated support for those with disabilities. We even have a dedicated refugee team to ensure a swift and smooth path for refugees in our borough to secure long-term and permanent employment.

 

In essence, when it comes to community wealth-building and accessing opportunities, our focus is on prioritizing those furthest from opportunities, ensuring they have the necessary resources to bridge the gap. This principle has guided our efforts over the last decade in addressing and solving the challenges faced by our community.

 

Supplementary Question:

Could the Council provide standard and tailored apprenticeships to address qualification gaps? Additionally, given your involvement with the Archway town centre group, can you continue local procurement efforts to support independent businesses that can offer work experience to young people facing challenges in Islington?

 

Response:

I collaborate closely with Michelin to ensure that care leavers receive holistic support, addressing various aspects of their lives as they transition into adulthood. This includes assistance with housing, employment opportunities, and meeting their fundamental needs.

 

In terms of employment, while we already have initiatives in place, I recognise the need to further tailor our efforts to better support care leavers in securing and maintaining employment. This involves exploring targeted support programmes that specifically address the challenges they may face in entering the workforce.

 

The Archway Town Centre Group, I acknowledge the significance of local procurement. We are actively involved in initiatives like mock trailer courses, which have shown a notable success rate—around 70-75%—in helping individuals from the community start market stalls. This is part of a broader strategy to empower local residents to initiate and grow small businesses, contributing positively to places such as Oxford Market.

 

(e) Cllr Hayes to Cllr Khondoker, Executive Member for Equalities, Culture and Inclusion:

 

We know that Islington’s Libraries are vital – they not only offer access to books but also to the internet, warm spaces, and community events. With winter coming up and the cost-of-living crisis continuing, what is the Council doing to make our libraries accessible and welcoming to all residents?

 

Response:

Thank you for your question, Ruth.

 

Since last year when we declared a cost of living crisis, the 10 libraries in the borough have been designated as warm spaces, enabling residents to access a comfortable space during the winter months as well as a wide range of free services and activities.

 

To also help residents with the cost of living crisis we’ve abolished library fines as these (or the fear of them) are seen by many residents as a barrier to library use. In addition, all outstanding fines were waivered to encourage Library users to return to us.

 

Our libraries have also worked with a number of other services and organisations to provide advice sessions in libraries to help residents reduce costs. For example, a member of the Shine team provided information and advice on reducing energy costs, insulating homes and other relevant themes. The service ran a Repair Café where residents were able to get small electrical items repaired for free.

 

The library service engages with residents from all walks of life and embodies the council priorities in creating a child-friendly Islington; supporting local communities and creating a healthier, greener Islington.

 

At two of our libraries, we’ve started an initiative to offer free period products to residents in need in partnership with Happy Flow, who work with a number of libraries across London.

 

At Central library we’ve started an initiative to offer free sim cards to eligible adults facing digital exclusion. This is in partnership with Good Things Foundation.

 

We work to make all libraries usable and accessible

 

Thanks again for your question, Ruth.

 

Supplementary Question:

Please explain what steps the libraries are taking to improve links with the different community groups in the borough and what they are doing to improve access to lifelong learning.

 

Response:

We currently provide a range of adult learning classes covering subjects like maths, English, and IT, and we are committed to expanding and enhancing this offering. To better understand the community's needs, we are actively engaging with libraries and seeking feedback to identify any service gaps and opportunities for improvement.

 

Additionally, our outreach efforts extend to collaborating with community groups and organizations such as Age UK and Help on Your Doorstep. Given the challenges posed by the cost of living crisis and the upcoming winter, we are intensifying our collaboration with them to disseminate information about the support services available in Islington. This includes services not only at libraries but also at various locations throughout the borough.

 

Through outreach activities conducted at libraries and community spaces like Manor Gardens, we aim to connect with residents and communities. Our team actively reaches out to different community groups, exploring potential collaborations and synergies. Similar to our partnerships with Help on Your Doorstep and Age UK, we are open to establishing place-based services either in our locations or theirs, facilitating broader access to community support services.

 

(f) Cllr Clarke to Cllr Turan, Executive Member for Health, and Social Care:

 

Islington GP Federation is an outstanding example of an organisation of GPs. It works for the people of Islington providing high standards of service, caring for and protecting Islington patients. Do you think all GP practices in Islington should be encouraged to become members of the federation?

 

Response:

Thank you for your question, Tricia.

 

I completely agree.

 

Islington GP Federation has brought together practices to deliver high quality services to patients at a time of exceptional pressures on GPs and across the NHS. Since the Federation was established in 2017, its track record has been built around innovation to improve services, working collaboratively with others to provide more integrated care and treatment, action to improve quality and through its Training Hub, supporting learning and development across the primary care workforce.  There is a real focus on inequalities, for example on services to improve the physical health of people with Serious Mental Illness and people with Learning Difficulties.

 

The benefits that patients have seen from the work of the Islington GP Federation with GP practices and other partners include improved access to a wider range of services, such as extended opening hours, urgent care, and more specialist clinics provided through general practice in the community.

 

Islington GP Federation has also worked with local practices to help recruit and retain key groups of staff, such as offering training, support, and opportunities for career progression for pharmacists working in GP surgeries. 

 

Another example is the Apprenticeship scheme for administrators working in general practice which Islington GP Federation developed working in collaboration with Islington Council which is opening up career opportunities for local people.

 

The GP Federation has also stepped in at times of exceptional need:

• offering on-site GP surgeries when asylum seekers were first being placed in local hotels, ensuring new arrivals received the help they needed and supporting access to ongoing care.
• stepping in to support practices and improve the organisation of services at short notice when there has been a risk of closure
• and playing a vital role in setting up and co-ordinating covid vaccination centres across the borough during the pandemic, working with the council and voluntary sector.

Islington GP Federation is a great example of GPs and others working together to make a real difference for the people of Islington and exemplify the best in public service ethos.

 

Supplementary Question:

How can patients be assured that their data is secure under the £480 million contract awarded to the US spy technology firm Palantir and its partner, Essential, for the construction of the NHS Federated Data Platform (FDP)? Considering concerns about patient privacy and potential misuse, how will the Council ensure that patients' data won't be sold to private companies or used for surveillance purposes?

 

Response:

I share your concerns about the security of patients' information under the current government's approach to the NHS. It's disheartening to witness the consistent underfunding of the NHS and the potential shift towards a system resembling the United States. The government's willingness to hand over a crucial role in managing patients' data to a US spy technology firm is alarming.

 

The information patients provide should not be sold to other companies or misused, but the current trajectory raises significant concerns. I believe it's disgraceful that the government is allowing such practices, putting profits before patient confidentiality.

 

In response to this, I encourage supporting organisations public interest groups. Collaborative efforts are essential to slow down detrimental processes and challenge decisions that jeopardise patient data security. Victories, such as St Ian losing the contract for one of the GP practices, demonstrate the impact of collective advocacy. As we continue the fight, there's a meeting next week where St Ian is transferring ownership to another healthcare group, showcasing that persistence can lead to positive outcomes. While the challenges are significant, I am hopeful that through continued advocacy, we can achieve more victories in the future. Thank you.

 

(g) Cllr Croft to Cllr Khondoker, Executive Member for Equalities, Culture and Inclusion:

 

Last year, Islington Council launched the Young Black Men and Mental Health Programme. Can you provide an update on how the programme is promoting wellbeing and tackling structural and institutional racism?

 

Written Response:

Thank you for your question, Joseph.

 

Strong progress has been achieved across all four pillars of the Young Black men and mental health programme since its launch last November.

 

Pillar 1, the Becoming a Man programme has been successfully implemented and delivered across three Islington secondary schools. Strong engagement has been achieved through schools continued support of the delivery of the programme, onboarding and integration of the programme into practice through consistent referrals into the programme. The three BAM psychologists/ counsellors are fully recruited to, operational and are assigned to each school. Feedback from schools is this continues to make a difference, have an impact and has been integrated into the school inclusion and pastoral strategy for supporting students.  There are currently 17 BAM groups across three secondary schools with 178 pupils engaging with the BAM programme across three schools in years 8,9 and10.

 

Pillar 2, The Elevate Team launched and was fully operational in July. The Elevate service is aimed at young Black men aged between 13-25 who are affected by mental health and serious youth violence. The service provides holistic therapy and youth work interventions, based on a flexible therapeutic relational and assertive outreach model which meets young people at whatever stage they are at in their lives.

 

The team are currently working with up to 45 young black men intensively and the team report that due to flexible relational therapeutic model – the engagement from young black men in interventions has been very strong. Plans are in place to develop a parent champion model to support parents of young black men referred to the scheme delivering a whole family approach. This will go live in January 2024. 

 

Pillar 3, The Barbers Round Chair Project has engaged 5 Islington Barbershops in training barbers to become mental health ambassadors. This innovative engagement model has been highly effective in supporting conversations around mental health and wellbeing at an early stage.

 

We’ve utilised existing lead barbers to operate as recruitment agents to recruit further Barber Mental Health Ambassadors into the scheme. We are planning to recruit up to 25 new barbers to join the scheme and training commences in February 2024. The training has been refreshed and expanded to cover: Mental Health First Aid, Safeguarding, Trauma informed and Making Every Contact Count (MECC) as well as sexual health screening.

The next phase is to develop the barbers' shops into multifaceted wellbeing sites to provide mental health and sexual health support as well as a refreshed website for the barbers round chair project.

 

Pillar 4, Catalysing whole system change is imperative for the programme in shifting the dial in embedding anti racist and cultural competency practice. Designed in partnership with the Staff College, the system change and innovation programme is a pioneering and multi professional programme intended to embed equity, diversity, and inclusion, by facilitating a greater knowledge and understanding of cultural competence and anti-racist practice.

 

The training programme launched in September 2023 and so far, we have trained up to over 800 professionals – we are targeted to train up to another 300 professionals through remaining training events. As part of this we have a commitment to train up to 500 metropolitan police officers through a series of just fair police summits.

 

Thanks again for your question, Joseph.  

 

(h) Cllr Ozdemir to Cllr Khondoker, Executive Member for Equalities, Culture and Inclusion:

 

The Halabja genocide was a tragic chemical massacre where thousands of innocent civilians died, and others were severely wounded. This moment in history is seared in the hearts and minds of the Kurdish community, of which there is a substantial population here in Islington. How will the Council commemorate this dreadful moment in history so we can learn lessons of the past and build a better future now?

 

Written Response:
Thank you for your question, Gulcin.

Islington has a strong and thriving Kurdish community, and many of our Kurdish residents will have direct connections to the Halabja genocide that continue to impact their families today.

I know the council’s Equalities team have contacted you to discuss how we could commemorate the massacre as part of our ongoing work and look forward to working with you on that.

 

I’m proud to say that we are looking into the possibility of hosting a speaker at our Holocaust Memorial Day event to speak about the Halabja genocide and mark it on that day.

 

We know that this is a difficult and upsetting time for many communities in Islington, and that they will have family and friends who are suffering right now. That’s why we’re reaching out directly to our communities and faith leaders and providing extra support to help people feel safe and welcome.

 

It is important for us to stand united in the face of adversity and where we can, celebrate what makes Islington special and create opportunities for our community to come together.

 

Thanks again for your question.

 

(i) Cllr Williamson to Cllr Woolf, Executive Member for Community Safety:

 

Tollington is now the second highest ward in the borough for reporting of drug issues and has had a 95% increase in the last 5 years of drug reports. However there has been little increase in on the ground resource. How will the council work with the police to ensure better resourcing so we can improve safety within the community?

 

Written Response:

We recently held a drugs round table to address concerns about drug use across the borough with attendance from a range of services including Public Health, Community Safety, and Housing, recognising this as a public health issue.

Our first combatting drugs partnership (CDP) meeting took place on Monday 4^th December. The meeting brought together a range of partners including the police, council, and voluntary sector. There is a draft Strategic Needs Assessment that forms the basis of the CDP and in identifying the areas for development in commissioning and responding to the issues around drug use and treatment.

Over the last few months, walk and talks have been undertaken with myself, council officers and the local police with approximately 50 people in attendance. Since then, physical improvements have been made for instance, by relocating a problematic bench in Evershot Gardens to Whittington Park.

There are also longer-term improvements awaiting funding including creating wildlife space at Evershot which would be in consultation with local residents, councillors and stakeholders.

We have significantly increased outreach work in the area and are supporting those presenting with the case study at St Mellitus Church being one example.  We are seeing significant decreases in ASB since intervention but clearly there is still more work to be done.

The Love Finsbury Park campaign has a clear link to Tollington ward and more broadly, police resources are being uplifted significantly as part of the new Met for London plan.  Islington will see double the number of Neighbourhood Inspectors to four from the current two in post with a similar uplift in ward Sergeants from 6 to 13. 

There will also be a significant uplift in PCSO numbers recognising the need for more officers on the ground, rooted in the community. Final details are being developed but there is an aspiration for there to be 41 PCSOs in Islington in year one. This would mean an increase in the higher harm locations of six additional officers and an increase of four officers in medium harm wards (including Tollington) in the coming year.  By the end of the process in year three, the aspiration is to have 69 PCSO’s for the borough.

As well as the uplift in neighbourhood policing officers, there has been a commitment to align the locality of police teams to that of the Community Safety team in a North, Central and South Cluster arrangement.

 

(j) Cllr Shaikh to Cllr Ward, Executive Member for Finance, Planning and Performance:

 

In February 2020, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) published a database of business enterprises involved in certain specified activities related to the Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.  The Database identifies 112 business enterprises involved in one or more activities that raised particular human rights concerns in a UN-led investigation.  These companies are involved in serious human rights abuses. 

 

Can you provide the full list of Islington Council’s LGPF holdings, and can you confirm that Islington’s LGPF, or any other investment activities, have no investments with the 112 OHCHR’s listed business enterprises? 

 

Written Response:

Thank you for your question, Cllr Shaikh

 

The LGPS Divest campaign has identified 63 local authorities with investments that are considered financially complicit in the illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories.

 

Islington Council is not on that list of such local authority pension funds.

 

The list can be checked on https://lgpsdivest.org/lgps-investments/

 

We continue to monitor this and are currently conducting due diligence against the latest UNHRC list of companies identified as having commercial interests in the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories (ratified in July 2023) to ensure that we have no indirect holdings in any such companies.

Thanks again for your question.

(k) Cllr Ogunro to Cllr Turan, Executive Member for Health and Social Care:

 

In 2017, we passed the motion to make Islington dementia friendly, and since then, we have been recognised by the Alzheimer’s Society for our work in becoming a dementia-friendly borough. However, many of our residents are still unaware of the range of support available. Can you please give an update on what services the Council offers and what plans you have to increase awareness?

 

Written Response:

Residents living with dementia can access a range of Adult social care support to help them maintain independence at home such as aids and adaptations, Assistive Technology, Telecare and Homecare.

 

Residential and nursing care services are also available to those who are no longer able to live at home.

 

Residents are supported by an advocate if they lack capacity, to ensure decisions are made in the person’s best interests. Adult Social Care also commissions the Islington Carers Hub which can support all Islington adult carers, including carers of people living with dementia. The carers hub provides access to advice and support to maintain their wellbeing and sustain the caring relationship.

 

The council invests in a Dementia Coordinator to drive efforts across the partnership to make Islington a more inclusive borough for people living with dementia. The Dementia Coordinator is working to grow the dementia friendly communities network, connecting people with resources to raise awareness and enhance the community offer.

 

Islington also has several initiatives, resources and activities that go towards making Islington a dementia inclusive borough which helps people with dementia live well in the community:

• Dementia friendly environments for example dementia friendly planning guidance and design standards and Disabled Facilities Grants which provides adaptions in people’s homes to enable independence
• Dementia Inclusive communities work to raise awareness and reduce stigma, including work with the Alzheimer's Society Ambassador to deliver Dementia Friendly sessions to council employees and residents.
• Work to drive more Inclusive communities encouraging businesses to support people to live their everyday lives, e.g., Safe Haven scheme promoted to people living with dementia and Toilets in town centre promotion?

 

However, we know there is still more to do. We are developing a dementia strategy in partnership with health trusts and voluntary and community sector organisations.

 

Around 150 residents and 80 professionals from partner organisations have helped shape the strategy, drawing on the experience of people living with dementia, mapping out the existing offer in Islington and identifying the gaps we need to close to improve outcomes for residents. This engagement has shaped the key themes the strategy will address which are:

• Preventing avoidable dementia – Residents would like to know more about what dementia is, what the risk factors are and how to lower risk.
• Timely identification and diagnosis – Diagnosis rates in Islington compare well to national benchmark. However, residents and the community groups that support them want to know how to recognise dementia in those they care for or support and they want to know what to do if they suspect someone has dementia.
• Post Diagnostic Care and Support – Residents and stakeholders describe a rich service offer delivered by dedicated and passionate professionals. But carers and professionals have told us that there needs to be better access to information and advice.  
• Living Well with Dementia – The Dementia Friendly Islington network has 50 members from across the community. The network, facilitated by our Dementia Coordinator, will continue to drive our dementia friendly communities ambitions where attendees share news, information, resources and best practice.

 

There will be several priorities under each of these themes but with regards to raising awareness, there are a few commitments to highlight:

• A dedicated dementia resource will be developed within the Islington Directory (Find Your Islington) so that residents and professionals will find what they need in one place.
• Dementia will be embedded in the Make Every Conversation Count framework to help improve identification of dementia and access to support.
• We have joined the recently formed North Central London Dementia network which shares good practice and provides opportunities for partnership. Since the loss of the Alzheimer’s Society Dementia Friends scheme, we are exploring options for a North Central London scheme.
• We will grow the dementia friendly communities network, connecting people with resources to raise awareness and enhance the community offer.

 

The strategy is due to be published in the spring of 2024 and will be implemented over the course of the next five years with support and oversight of the health and care partners in the Islington Borough Partnership.

 

I hope this response finds you well.

 

 

 

 

 

(l) Cllr Jegorovas-Armstrong to Cllr Ward, Executive Member for Finance, Planning and Performance:

 

Can you provide an update on the campaign for residence based voting rights?

 

Written Response:

Thank you for your question, Cllr Jegorovas-Armstrong

Currently, to register to vote you must be living at the address where you are registering, aged 16 or over and you must also be either a British citizen, an Irish or EU citizen living in the UK, a Commonwealth citizen who has permission or whom does not need permission to enter or stay in the UK.

 

Following the implementation of the Elections Act 2022, from 7 May 2024 EU citizens’ voting and candidacy rights will depend on when they moved to the UK and which country they are from. EU citizens who were resident in the UK before 1 January 2021 will retain their voting and candidacy rights for local elections in England if they retain a lawful immigration status.

 

EU citizens resident in the UK from 1 January 2021 will only get local election voting rights if there is a bilateral agreement between the UK and their home country. In due course, Electoral registration officers will be required to check whether an EU citizen currently registered can remain registered to vote. The Government has yet to finalise the arrangements that EROs will have to follow. 

 

Thanks again for your question.