Health and Wellbeing Board	16^th March 2022
Report of the Independent Chair of the Mental Health Partnership

Report of the Independent Chair of the York Health and Wellbeing Board’s Mental Health Partnership

Summary

1. This report presents the Health and Wellbeing Board with an update on the work the partnership has undertaken since last reporting to the board in January 2021

2. The Independent chair of the partnership will be in attendance at the meeting to present this report.

Background

3. The joint health and wellbeing strategy for 2017-22 identifies four principal themes to be addressed.  One of these themes is mental health and wellbeing with the key priority for that theme being ‘to get better at spotting the early signs of mental ill health and intervening early’.  Other aims in the joint health and wellbeing strategy in relation to mental health are:

Ø Focus on recovery and rehabilitation

Ø Improve services for young mothers, children and young people

Ø Ensure that York becomes a Suicide Safer city

Ø Ensure that York is both a mental health and dementia-friendly environment

Ø Improve the services for those with learning disabilities (to be addressed in its own strategy)

4. These are expanded and explored in more detail in the Health and Wellbeing Board’s all age mental health strategy 2018-2023.

5. Additionally in 2019 the Health and Wellbeing Board undertook a mid-way review of the joint health and wellbeing strategy and identified that the following priority should be their focus for mental health for the rest of the strategy’s lifetime:

The board will promote awareness and understanding of the protective factors that support good mental wellbeing and ensure that compassionate, strength-based approaches in communities are developed.

6. As reported in the partnership’s report to the HWBB in 2021 this was communicated to the Mental Health Partnership who were heartened to see that it was a perfect fit to the holistic approach to the delivery of the mental health priorities they had been taking.

Independent Chair’s Update

7. This annual progress update aims to illustrate how the partnership is continuing to work in an all-inclusive way to shift the focus from hospital based services to a more community focused model of service provision. It gives a flavour of the transformational change needed to achieve our long term vision of embedding a Trieste style model of mental health care in York.

8. As chair of the partnership I would like to recognise the phenomenal efforts and achievements of colleagues on the Mental Health Partnership. At the same time as working through a pandemic they have come together to look to the future of how systems and delivery need to change across the city to improve the lives of individuals. The person receiving the mental health services and support is now the starting point for all our planning for the future. This will also include the voice of carers and families.

9. As our work progresses we are mindful of ensuring there is an integrated all age approach to mental health services. York has an opportunity to deliver fundamental change over the next five to ten years. It will need a focus on long term community programmes with a system that comes together at ‘Place’ to create positive opportunities for everyone involved. This will require strategic involvement and drive to deliver.

10. The Mental Health Partnership is a vibrant and fast paced group with a myriad of work happening outside of our quarterly meeting cycle.  As part of this annual progress report partnership members have provided a number of summary updates on some of the areas of work we have focused on since our last report to HWBB. These are:

Ø Suicide Prevention (Annex A refers)

Ø York Against Stigma (Annex B refers)

Ø Connecting our City (Annex C refers)

Ø Multiple Complex Needs (Annex D refers)

Ø Developing a Dementia Strategy for York (Annex E refers)

Ø Mental Health Housing and Support (Annex F refers)

11. These annexes provide summaries focused on the main areas of work that the partnership have progressed but by no means all that we have been involved in. Some partnership members were also involved in the mental health summit held in March 2021. One outcome of this was to produce an in-depth piece of work on bereavement support and this was completed by the JSNA group and presented to the partnership as the ‘bereavement support needs assessment’ at our September 2021 meeting. As chair of the partnership I have also encouraged all organisations represented at the Mental Health Partnership to sign up to the Dual Diagnosis Pledge, which the HWBB received at their meeting in January 2022.

12. Over the coming year we will continue to progress all of our current areas of work and hope the Health and Wellbeing Board will support us in this. At this point I should also mention that with the establishment of the new Children and Young People’s Health and Wellbeing Programme Board the responsibility for children’s mental health will sit with them. I think some clarification needs to be provided on where student mental health sits and an acknowledgement that there may be areas of cross-over between the Mental Health Partnership and the newly established programme board.

13. As detailed in the Connecting our City update at Annex C, the agreed priorities of the partnership have been taken forward this year using York’s allocation of the national community mental health transformation fund. These priorities are being delivered through CYC commissioning with significant support and contribution from Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust (TEWV) and the wider system. The partnership will seek to build on the success of this approach in future years. As part of this we will take the opportunity to review the terms of reference of the mental health partnership as the health and social care integration arrangements in York progress, ensuring a continued focus on delivery of support informed by co-production and strong partnerships.

14. I would like to end my annual update with a few heartening quotes from colleagues about their experiences of being a partnership member and some quotes from members of our co-production network:

ØFrom The Director of Converge: The partnership and its development of the ‘Connecting our City’ vision has been very important in guiding our strategic vision at Converge.

ØFrom the carer representative on the partnership: As a carer and thus not part of any particular organisation, I feel that the partnership provides me with a "home" , somewhere where likeminded people tackle some very large issues with humour and persistence. I feel part of a team which is built on good relationships and always feel listened to and valued. I am helping make important decisions, it is a place where things get done.

This is an exciting time as we are beginning to see our vision of a Trieste type model of mental health support is coming off the paper and becoming a reality in York. This can only happen because of the breadth of experience and commitment of those involved.

ØFrom members of the co-production network: ‘Actually, involving the service user who can contribute to make change’; ‘This network has a real influence on money and decision that is genuine’; ‘York Co-Production Network is a priority to all my meetings, it's the one I want to go to’.

Consultation

15. Consultation with a wide audience took place when developing both the joint health and wellbeing strategy and the mental health strategy.

16. As referenced in Annex C a co-production network has been established and meets monthly, feeding into the partnership around a number of work areas. The partnership have a standing item on their agenda to receive feedback from this network.

Options      

17. There are no specific options for the Health and Wellbeing Board but they are asked to note the report and indicate their continuing support for the Mental Health partnership and its chosen direction of travel.

  Implications

18. It is important that the priorities around mental health and wellbeing in both the joint health and wellbeing strategy and the all age mental health strategy are delivered. The establishment of the Mental Health Partnership has enabled this to be achieved. There is a recognition that demand on services will significantly increase across all age groups and major change will be required to ensure that all agencies and partners work together in all sectors to meet this challenge; particularly in response to Covid 19.

Recommendations

19. The Health and Wellbeing Board are asked to note the report and their continued support for the Mental Health Partnership

Reason: To give the Health and Wellbeing Board oversight of the work of the Mental Health Partnership and assurance in relation to strategy delivery.

Contact Details

Author:	Chief Officer Responsible for the report:
Tim Madgwick Independent Chair of the Mental Health Partnership	Tim Madgwick Independent Chair of the Mental Health Partnership
	Report Approved	X	Date	08/03/2022
Specialist Implications Officer(s) None
Wards Affected:					All	ü
For further information please contact the author of the report

Background Papers:

None

Annexes

Annex A: Progress update on suicide prevention

Annex B: Progress update on York against Stigma

Annex C: Progress update in relation to Connecting our City

Annex D: progress Update in relation to Multiple Complex Needs

Annex E: Progress Update in relation to developing a Dementia Strategy for York

Annex F: Mental Health Housing and Support