Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from;

Dr Paul Bishop

Andy Baker Cheshire Police

Isla Wilson, Cheshire East Health and Care Place Partnership

Helen Charlesworth-May, Executive Director Adults, Health and Integration

Councillor Rhodes

Councillor Dawn Clark and Josh Jones Cheshire Police were present as substitutes

To provide an opportunity for Members and Officers to declare any disclosable pecuniary and non-pecuniary interests in any item on the agenda.

There were no declarations of interest.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 4 November 2025.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the previous meeting held on 4 November 2025 were approved as a correct record.

In accordance with paragraph 2.24 of the Council’s Committee Procedure Rules and Appendix on Public Speaking, set out in the Constitution, a total period of 15 minutes is allocated for members of the public to put questions to the committee on any matter relating to this agenda. Each member of the public will be allowed up to two minutes each to speak, and the Chair will have discretion to vary this where they consider it appropriate.

Members of the public wishing to speak are required to provide notice of this at least three clear working days’ in advance of the meeting.

There were no public speakers.

To provide the Health & Wellbeing Board (HWB) with an update on the 2023 Tartan Rug, an overview of the changes since the 2022 and insight into the delays of this publication.

The Board received a report from Sara Deakin, Head of Public Health Intelligence, providing an update on the publication of the 2023 Tartan Rug, a Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) product that presents health and wellbeing data across Cheshire East to highlight inequalities at ward level.

The board were advised that the 2023 update was published in December 2025 following delays due to the availability of Census 2021 and Office for Health Improvement and Disparities data.

The board noted that overall health outcomes in Cheshire East remain better than or comparable with the England average for most indicators, with a modest improvement since 2022 and a narrowing of inequality gaps in some care communities. However, persistent inequalities remain, particularly in parts of Crewe, Macclesfield and Handforth, and outcomes were worse than the national average for indicators including hospital stays for self?harm, emergency admissions for young children, and hip fracture admissions.

The Board noted that the Tartan Rug will continue to be used to monitor trends over time and to support ongoing work to reduce health inequalities across Cheshire East.

The board sought clarification regarding some apparent inconsistencies in the colouration of care communities within the published table, which officers undertook to review. Questions were raised about the future availability of ward-level data and the implications of using alternative geographies. It was explained to the board that while alternative approaches could be explored, this would risk losing the long-term consistency currently offered by the Tartan Rug, and therefore ongoing lobbying was taking place at national level to address this issue.

The board welcomed reassurance that the data was actively being used to inform strategic decision-making, service design and funding bids, including work to support integrated neighbourhood teams, early years services and capital investment proposals. Particular note was taken of the growing use of the Tartan Rug by partners outside the Council, including voluntary and community sector organisations, to evidence need and advocate for investment.

The Health and Wellbeing Board noted the updated Tartan Rug and endorsed its continued use as a key strategic tool to inform system-wide decision-making and to support efforts to address health inequalities across Cheshire East. It was agreed that Public Health Intelligence would review and, if necessary, correct any inconsistencies identified in the documentation, and that the Director of Public Health would continue to update the Board on progress relating to national data availability.

RESOLVED:

That the board note the update.

To provide an update on the Child Death Overview Panel – Annual Report 2024-2025.

The board received the Pan Cheshire Child Death Overview Panel Annual Report 2024/25 from Glenda Augustine, Independent Chair of the Pan Cheshire Child Death Overview Panel which outlined the statutory role of the Panel and its review of all child deaths across the Pan Cheshire area.

The board noted that progress had been made in reducing the number of outstanding reviews and improving the timeliness of completed cases. Attention was drawn to the identification of modifiable factors in a significant proportion of cases. These included issues related to service provision, maternal obesity, parental mental health, smoking and late or concealed pregnancy. The board were reassured that the higher proportion of modifiable factors identified locally reflected robust application of national guidance rather than underperformance, and that this issue had been discussed and validated at national level.

The board welcomed the report and confirmed that the Health and Wellbeing Board was the appropriate forum to provide system-wide governance and accountability for Child Death Overview Panel activity. The links between deprivation, health inequalities and child mortality were strongly emphasised, alongside the importance of early intervention, whole-family approaches and alignment with the Cheshire East Families First programme.

The board discussed the challenges associated with maternal obesity, food insecurity, the cost of living and the need for sensitive, culturally informed approaches that avoided unintended consequences, particularly for children and young people’s mental health.

The board noted that learning was already being fed into safeguarding partnerships and locality planning, and that there were mechanisms to escalate common themes and concerns nationally via the National Child Mortality Database. Clarification was also provided that references in the report to recommendations for 2025/26 would be corrected to reflect the 2026/27 reporting period.

The board formally received and noted the Child Death Overview Panel Annual Report and endorsed the system-wide recommendations set out in the report.

It was noted that the Director of Public Health would continue to lead work to promote healthy weight, smoking cessation and mental wellbeing for expectant parents, that safeguarding partnerships would embed learning related to adverse childhood experiences into their action plans.

The Child Death Overview Panel representative undertook to continue engagement with partners to support implementation.

RESOLVED:

That the board note the update.