Agenda item

This report asks Members to receive and consider further information to inform their review into childhood obesity. It also asks them to formulate some recommendations for inclusion in the draft final report.

Members considered a report, which presented them with further information to inform their review into childhood obesity to enable them to formulate some recommendations for inclusion in the final draft report.

The Scrutiny Officer informed Members that the Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee, had at their meeting on 29 March, considered the Task Groups Interim Report. The Committee had felt that, in view of the authorities low take up of school meals, the Education Authority should proactively encourage the promotion and general take up of both school meals and free school meals through individual schools and their Governors. They had suggested that the Childhood Obesity Task Group might like to consider including a recommendation to this effect in the final report.

In view of the vast amount of information received to date the Task Group were reminded of their need to focus their discussions on the aim of the review, which was to address whether current service provision was effectively reducing childhood obesity in the city.

In relation to the key objectives information had previously been provided or was circulated at the meeting in relation to each objective, details of which were set out under each objective below:

Objective ii) To explore the impact of current initiatives such as healthy eating, 5 a day and 30 minutes of exercise 5 times a week etc on tackling obesity.

• Briefing note on the Healthy Schools initiative (Annex A of the report).
• Details of physical activity within schools (the Council’s PE and Schools Sport Consultant presented this information)
• Details relating to the take up of school meals in like for like Authorities, and weekly menus (Annex B) (the Council’s Contracts Manager presented this information).
• Progress of “Just 30” physical activity campaign – Report to Executive Member for Leisure, Culture and Social Inclusion, 13 April 2010 (circulated at the meeting).

Members questioned a number of points in relation to the presentation, including:

• Definition of obesity;
• How involved were parents in relation to the schools screening programme;
• School halls often doubled up as canteens which were not ideal surroundings for eating;
• Schools were not able to police packups;
• School Tuck Shops were no longer able to stock flapjacks, cheese etc which often resulted in children’s pack ups containing chocolate bars/crisps as snacks at break;
• Children were often better informed on healthy eating issues than parents so there was a need to re-educate parents on the ideal pack-up;
• Concern at low take up rate of school meals and the possibility of this not changing unless the claim form was simplified;
• Any PE beyond the governments recommended 2 hours per week was often a charged for;
• Of the money put into active leisure in North Yorkshire by the PCT how much was allocated to York?
• Theatre and drama were not seen as exercise;
• There was evidence that where Play builder money had been used for schemes that there had been good take up;
• That no one Officer had sole responsibility for obesity issues. 

Objective iii) To explore external factors that may contribute to childhood obesity.

• Presentation by Mike McGrath, Health Improvement Manager (obesity) at NHS North Yorkshire and York which gave details of the 7 major sub-systems affecting the energy balance, the full obesity System Map showing all 108 indicators together with details of the York Action Plan – Obesity 2010
• Presentation from the Council’s Food Safety Unit on Nutritional Labelling of Food (presentation details circulated at the meeting).

Members questioned a number of points in relation to the presentation, including:

• Concern that there was nothing in the regulations eg Local Authorities Coordinators of Regulatory Services (LACORS) or the Food Standards Agency which required food establishments to display signs indicating the type of fat used in the preparation of food on their premises;
• Visual images were useful in getting the message about food content to audiences;
• European wide labelling would assist residents in making informed choices when purchasing food products; 

Objective iv) To learn more about the All Together Better Programme and the Healthy Weight, Active Lives Strategic Implementation Group and the methods they are using to reduce childhood obesity.

• Presentation by the Community Project Officer for the Altogether Better Programme in relation to York (copy of presentation circulated at the meeting).

Members questioned a number of points in relation to the presentation, including:

• Confirmation that the Altogether Better Programme worked with adults and not children;
• Criteria for the target groups;
• Health inequalities in York were not above the national average;
• Confirmation that parents were very unaware of the content of school meals eg high in protein.

The Community Project Officer for this initiative pointed out that their work had shown that there was a need for fresh produce to be available locally and cheaply. This could be either through food co-operatives or farmers markets.

Objective v) To look at the continuity of services into adulthood.

• Presentation by the Nutrition & Dietetic Service Manager at York Hospital on Adult Services for Obesity (details circulated at meeting).

Members questioned a number of points in relation to the presentation, including:

• Incidence of obese adults in the Authorities area;
• Child School health records;
• Increase in bariatric surgery cases if York commissioners lowered the BMI threshold for patients to below 50;

Objective vi) To explore how monies are spent on tackling obesity.

• Health Improvement Manager (obesity) at NHS North Yorkshire & York

The Chair thanked all the representatives for the circulated information and their presentations, which would help inform their final report and recommendations.

RESOLVED:             i) That the information presented at the meeting be received and noted.

ii)                  That the Scrutiny Officer undertake the preparation of the final report as a basis for discussion to include a list of the key points from each of today’s presentations.

iii)                That copies of the draft final report be circulated to Task Group members to enable them to formulate recommendations for inclusion in the draft final report.

REASON:                  In order to progress this review