Agenda and minutes

No apologies for absence were received.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 11 April, 2019.

RESOLVED –

That the minutes of the previous meeting, held on 11 April 2019, be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

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

The following declarations of interest were made;

·         Councillor L Wardlaw declared a non-pecuniary interest in Minute No. 9;

·         Councillor S Gardiner declared a non-pecuniary interest in Minute No. 10;

·         Councillors J Clowes and A Moran declared non-pecuniary interests in Minute No. 11.

To provide an opportunity for Members to declare the existence of a party whip in relation to any item on the Agenda

There were no declarations of the existence of a party whip.

A total period of 15 minutes is allocated for members of the public to make a statement(s) on any matter that falls within the remit of the Committee.

Individual members of the public may speak for up to 5 minutes, but the Chairman will decide how the period of time allocated for public speaking will be apportioned, where there are a number of speakers.

Note: in order for officers to undertake and background research, it would be helpful if members of the public notified the Scrutiny Officer listed at the foot of the Agenda at least one working day before the meeting with brief details of the matter to be covered.

There were no members of the public present.

The committee were advised that this report was issued with the agenda to provide members with a background to health scrutiny regulations and legislation, in advance of the meeting.

RESOLVED –

That the report be noted.

The committee were advised by the Scrutiny Officer on the progress of its referral made to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care regarding the closure of specialist oral surgery and orthodontic surgeries at Macclesfield District General Hospital.

The referral was still being reviewed by the Independent Reconfiguration Panel – which works on behalf of the Secretary of State to review referrals – and that the committee would be informed of any decision as soon as one had been made.

RESOLVED –

That the update be noted, and the committee be informed of the Secretary of State’s decision as soon as it has been made.

Consideration was given to a report of the Chief Accountable Officer of the four Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Groups on the progress of the Working Together Across Cheshire programme, which has overseen the engagement and consultation relating to the proposed merger of the four Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) into one single commissioning body from April 2020.

The committee was informed that a period of public engagement had commenced and would run through 23 June, 2019. The results of this would be included in the information presented to the GPs of the four CCGs, who will be formally consulted on the proposal between 5 August and 20 September, 2019.

Members put questions and comments in relation to;

·         Concern that the turn out as at 13 June 2019 (approximately 150 members of the public) was very low in the context of the circa 800,000 residents across the footprints of the four CCGs;

·         How and where the public engagement information had been circulated and promoted;

·         What the future arrangements would be for the proposed single Cheshire CCG to report to the Cheshire East Health and Wellbeing Board;

·         Whether there had been any known opposition to the proposed merger from the public, interested stakeholders, or the formal member bodies of the four CCGs;

·         Whether patient participation groups would be involved during the formal consultation with GPs; and

·         The projected financial savings from the proposed merger.

RESOLVED –

1          That the committee supports and endorses the proposal to merge the four Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Groups.

2          That the council’s portfolio holders endeavour to develop and foster effective working relationships with their counterparts at Cheshire West and Chester Council, to support the future joint working arrangements that would be put in place, subject to merger of the four CCGs being formally approved.

Pursuant to the Chairman’s non-pecuniary declaration of interest, the Vice-Chairman sat in the Chair for this item.

Consideration was given to the Quality Account 2018/19 submission from Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, which provided an overview of its performance during the last municipal year, and its areas of focus for the 2019/20.

Members put questions and comments in relation to;

·         Receiving confirmation of the different sources of funding received by the Trust;

·         Concern that the Trust had received a “requires improvement” rating in relation to the area titled “are services safe?”

·         Whether the Trust already had an improvement plan in place to tackle its “requires improvement” rating; and

·         Concern that the staff survey indicated a potential racial disparity regarding equal opportunities, and whether the Trust had plans in place to investigate and address this.

RESOLVED –

1          That the Quality Account 2018/19 be noted.

2          That the committee’s comments be formally shared with the Trust by the Scrutiny Officer, for inclusion in the final, published version of the Account.

The Chairman resumed the Chair for the remainder of the meeting from this item.

Consideration was given to the Quality Account 2018/19 submission from East Cheshire NHS Trust, which provided an overview of its performance during the last municipal year, and its areas of focus for the 2019/20.

Members put questions and comments in relation to;

·         Why the Trust’s mortality rate was higher than expected in 2018/19;

·         Concern that the Trust had been required to budget through a continued funding deficit, and what the future outlook was for the Trust’s finances and financial sustainability;

·         How the Trust had performed against targets related to delayed transfers of care; and

·         Whether any follow-up actions had taken place in response to only 76% of staff reporting in the Trust’s annual staff survey, that they would recommend East Cheshire NHS Trust as a healthcare provider to their friends or family.

RESOLVED –

1          That the Quality Account 2018/19 be noted.

2          That the committee’s comments be formally shared with the Trust by the Scrutiny Officer, for inclusion in the final, published version of the Account.

Consideration was given to the Quality Account 2018/19 submission from Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which provided an overview of its performance during the last municipal year, and its areas of focus for the 2019/20.

Members put questions and comments in relation to;

·         Concern in relation to the longer-term workforce stability challenges facing this Trust, and all others;

·         The work the Trust had undertaken in respect of its learning disability targets; and

·         How the Trust had used, and was planning to continue to use, return to practice programmes to ensure the long term sustainability of its workforce.

The committee passed a note of thanks to the previous Chief Accountable Officer of the Trust, Tracy Bullock, and noted that they looked forward to meeting the new Chief Accountable Officer and learning more about their vision and plans for the Trust.

RESOLVED –

1          That the Quality Account 2018/19 be noted.

2          That the committee’s comments be formally shared with the Trust by the Scrutiny Officer, for inclusion in the final, published version of the Account.

The committee adjourned for a short break.

Consideration was given to report that outlined the background to, and performance of, the Extended Access Service (part of the wider NHS Improved Access to General Practice Programme) implemented by both Eastern Cheshire CCG and South Cheshire CCG.

Members asked questions and sought clarity on how the scheme had worked in practice and how effectively the scheme had been used by local Trusts when triaging and diagnosing whether patients would be best seen by A&E or a GP.

The committee agreed that raising awareness of the Extended Access Service would help it to deliver further efficiencies and improvements to patient experiences and outcomes.

RESOLVED –

That the report be noted.

Consideration was given to the council’s forward plan of key decisions.

RESOLVED –

That the Scrutiny Office enquire with the relevant officers to determine whether the item listed as “CE 18/19-64: Framework for Domestic Repairs and Adaptations” would, in part, fall within the remit of this committee, and whether the matter would be appropriately scrutinised and considered by one of the other three overview and scrutiny committees.

To review the current work programme and amend (add new items or delete existing ones) as required.

Consideration was given to the committee’s work programme.

RESOLVED –

1          That “Care4CE” be added to the work programme to be considered at its next meeting on 1 August 2019.

2          That the Scrutiny Officer liaise with the relevant officers to determine whether the addition of an item relating to the welfare of gypsies and travellers in Cheshire East would appropriately fall within the remit of this committee, and would not duplicate that of another council body.