Held at the Kingsway Centre, Scunthorpe.
Present:
North Lincolnshire Council (Social and Housing Services): Mike Briggs, Julie Clark, Paul Cowling (for Mick Gibbs), Claire Startin, Joanne Robinson, Steve Corton, Michelle Barnard, Michelle Bourne and Kevin Wybrant.
North Lincolnshire Council (Leisure Services): Andy Bagshaw and Maureen Moore.
North Lincolnshire Council (Adult Education): Margaret Cole and Hilary Beverley.
Angela Waddingham - North Lincs Primary Care Trust
Chris Darlington - St Hugh’s Secondary School
Caroline Ridgway - Disability Employment Advisor
Independent Sector: Sarah Middleton and Karen Frankland.
Rethink: Tony Deighton and Jane Johnson.
Apna Sahara: Shikha Maitra and Bhanumets Dhara
Carer reps: John Hankinson and Cliff Allen.
User members: Kim Grimbleby, Steven Martin, Christina Cutter, Catherine Clark, Barbara Drew, Jamie Dearle and Chris Brown.
For part of the meeting:
Martin Patrick - Connexions
1. Apologies
Cllr Liz Redfern - Cabinet Member for Social Services
North Lincolnshire Council (Social and Housing Services): Keith Martin, Denise Hyde, Mick Gibbs and Teresa Anderson.
North Lindsey College: Christine Scott and Barbara Cullen.
Sue Atkins - Disability Services Team Manager
Rama Kholi - Multi Racial Local Link
Debra Moore - Regional link for National Valuing People Support Team
2. Issues arising from the workshops and agreement on recommendations for action.
Workshop 1 – Sport and leisure recreation and how services can become more inclusive. Run by Andy Bagshaw (Sports Facilities Manager) and Maureen Moore (Sports and Play Development Manager)
It was agreed that Leisure Services would work with Hilary Beverley’s group to submit an Awards for All Lottery bid to enable the group to purchase equipment to expand New Age Kurling. In the meantime Leisure Services will loan Hilary’s group a set of equipment.
Leisure Services will work with Hilary and other partners in establishing an inclusive Competitive New Age Kurling League in North Lincolnshire
Leisure Services will:
- Look at identifying the leisure needs of adults with special needs/disabilities and work with Social Services in trying to meet these needs by introducing individuals into community based leisure activities.
- Look at expanding the "buddying" system in leisure facilities. The volunteer helper/ buddy will not have to pay for the service.
- Work with the Social Services Family Carer group to encourage family activities as a means of expanding buddying.
- Look to establish "taster" sessions in leisure facilities ensuring there are exit routes to ensure progression
- Establish an out of school sports club at St Hugh’s School,
- Market services more creatively in letting people know what services are on offer.
Jamie Dearle expressed disappointment at the cessation the Saturday multi sports activity session at Scunthorpe Leisure Center. Leisure Services agreed to work with Jamie in re-establishing this.
Leisure Services and Social Services have agreed to work in partnership to provide awareness training for each other’s staff to try and overcome the barriers that prevent people with a disability/special education need from accessing mainstream leisure facilities. Once training has been carried out, Chris Darlington has offered to give staff hands on experience to help them gain more experience
The workshop also talked about sharing of strategies and plans and Chris Darlington asked if North Lincs Council have a strategy/plan for young people with disabilities.
Maureen Moore referred to the North Lincolnshire Council Diversity Strategy that all services are required to adhere to.
It was acknowledged that a specific strategy for adults and children with disabilities is needed.
The contact details required by Cliff Allen regarding sources and support in submitting funding bids is Simon Seal, Community Development Manager, Leisure Services, PO Box 35, Hewson House, Station Road, Brigg, DN20 8XJ, Tel 01724 297265. Email: simon.seal@northlincs.gov.uk.
Workshop 2 – Housing – how the LD Housing Strategy is moving forward. Run by Gary Grimbleby, Steve Corton and Chris Brown.
This group put the onus back on to the Partnership Board to think about issues. Talking about financial constraints whilst supporting people’s future needs to be identified. Supporting People does not have the capacity alone and needs to link in to work already being done. This applies to the ongoing assessment of unmet and emerging (new) needs, and in strategies for developing new supported housing provision in order to meet these needs.
Questions:
- How do you know who will need supported housing next year?
- How do you know what their different needs will be?
- How do you make sure that Supporting People planners (The Commissioning Body) know how many people need this help and what they need?
- How do we sort out where the money comes from?
- Do not be afraid to identify needs that will (because of available resources) be unmet – politicians to possibly work to look at in the future.
Gary Grimbleby has a list of priorities re supported housing. Lots of people fall outside of these priorities. Steve Corton and the Supporting People Team need to be involved in this.
Within the service we give there are people that we know about but there are people that we do not know about that perhaps have supported housing needs. The Partnership Board needs to do something on this and feed it back to Supporting People. Michelle Barnard is taking the SP Lead on people with learning disabilities. The carers said they wanted carers engaged at a much earlier age and perhaps need to go further back than 16 years of age. Opinions of families and carers to be encouraged. Funds/resources need to be put together to identify all people with a learning disability.
Chris Darlington explained that for the first time, during January 2004 a list of statemented youngsters is available and this will identify who is coming through the school.
AGREED: Supporting People should be a standing agenda item on the Housing sub-group to the Valuing People Board, with reports referred to the Board when appropriate to do so.
4. Feedback and exercise on carers strategy – Joanne Robinson.
Discussion to take place at a later Partnership Board meeting.
5/6. Update from previous Learning Disability Partnership Board meeting held on 21 November 2004 and
Report back from the Learning Disability Service Boards – 14 January 2004 and 25 February 2004
- The transition procedure (attached) is complete ie the technical procedure and a 2-page leaflet written for parents. This will now be launched and training will take place for those using the procedure. Martin Patrick will lead on this and will identify the people who will carry out the work. Connexions will come back to this meeting and say how things are going. ACTION: Martin Patrick
Comments to be sent back to Martin Patrick on Tel No: 01482 223081 or on e-mail mpatrick@getting-on.co.uk. ACTION: ALL
- At the recent Service Board, Mick Gibbs was appointed as the permanent representative from Children and Families.
- A regular finance report is submitted to the Service Board.
- Aspergers/Autism – A number of people have been working on this to bring things together.
There will be a report back at the next Service Board meeting.
- Transport Broker Project – the North Lincs Highways section have taken this work on Board. They are paying for this to go ahead.
- We are trying to get an employment champion and trying to organise a workshop to get some movement on the employment strategy. There is a target date of the next Service Board meeting, 2 April 2004.
Debra Moore, Regional link for National Valuing People Support Team to identify someone who can run a workshop that could possibly kick off on employment. A champion would then lead this on. Report back on employment to go on to the next Partnership Board agenda.
- A review of mental health, Doncaster and South Humber NHS Trust is ongoing. North Lincs Council have put forward views from the professional side of the service on issues with the mental health services that is provided in North Lincs.
Julie Clark has put forward the concerns from the sub groups, issues that come from professionals and family carers. They have not independently sought views of service users and Julie Clark has recommended this comes through Rethink. ACTION: Service Users/Tony Deighton
Comments to be made to Mike Briggs as a member of the Mental Health review group.
At the last Service Board meeting we agreed that when people come to the Partnership Board we pay for example towards transport and telephone calls. Different boards have different ways of making up the allowances and we are finding out how other groups recompense people. ACTION: MB
- The Council have agreed in their financial programme that they are going to fund the new part of Brigg Resource Centre. We can close off the old building and the new part should be ready by next winter. Julie Clark is organising an event to celebrate the news. ACTION: Julie Clark
- The voucher scheme for respite care is to be made permanent.
- The name of the Challenging Behaviour Service and the Challenging Behaviour Service Unit will be changed to intensive support service and behavioural support officers.
A review of the service has started and people who have contact with the service will be invited to a meeting to launch this work. The new names will be launched at the same time.
7. Report back from the Learning Disability Quarterly Performance Review
There is an invitation from this meeting for anyone who wishes to attend future Quarterly Performance Review meetings.
The dates are as follows:
- 9am to 12.30pm - 7 May 2004
- 9am to 12.30pm - 6 August 2004
- 9am to 12.30pm - 5 November 2004
Please let us know if you are coming.
Tony Deighton felt that the meetings needed to be more user-friendly.
Steve Corton felt that the meeting would be more useful if it contained certain themes.
8. Report back from the Speak-Up meeting
Jane Johnson reported back from the Speak-Up meeting, now called "Time for Action". The last two meetings had more people attending. People from the Hobbies Centre want to join the meetings but do not have the resources to transport people. Joanne Robinson to look at this.
ACTION: Joanne Robinson
Julie Clark was the guest speaker at the last meeting.
The group came up with fund raising ideas for a sponsored swim and sponsored disco.
A full set of proposals from this group is attached. This will go on the agenda for the next Partnership Board meeting for comments.
Steven Martin has volunteered to co-chair future Partnership Board meetings with support from the MENCAP District Officer. Training will be arranged by the Valuing People Support Team.
Diane Pearson to continue to produce audio minutes. An extra copy is to be passed to Joanne Robinson. ACTION: DP
"Finance" to become an agenda item at future Partnership Board meetings and we will show this board where the money goes.
9. Report from the sub groups co-ordinator
- Person Centred Planning – Kevin Wybrant tabled a report to look at what has been happening to develop person centred planning in North Lincolnshire in the past and what work needs to happen in the coming year.
Kevin’s post as Person Centred Planing Co-ordinator runs out at the end of October 2004. We need to decide whether or not we carry on employing Kevin in this post for another year. This will go on the agenda for the May 2004 Partnership Board meeting. ACTION: ALL
- The Sub Group Co-ordinators Meeting minutes dated 18 February 2004 are attached. It was suggested that this meeting could be disbanded in the future and that Julie would just collect updates from the lead worker and put into a report for the board. If this didn’t work Julie would get the group together again. The Partnership Board agreed to this.
- The first draft of the North Lincolnshire Council Valuing People Partnership Board "Workforce Development Plan" is attached. Can you please pass on any comments to Julie Clark by 16 April 2004. Julie can be contacted on: 01724 271982, email: Julie.Clark@northlincs.gov.uk, or at The Hollies, Normanby Road, Scunthorpe. ACTION: ALL
- Specialist MH Services Angela Waddingham explained that work is ongoing but we have not yet been successful in getting a consultant Learning Disability Support for people with mental health problems. She is contacting other Primary Care Trusts and is also writing to the Strategic Health Authority to see if there is any help that they can give us.
10. Report back from Carers representatives
- There has been a good return from the questionnaire.
- John Hankinson asked for it to be formally stated that the Learning Disability Partnership Board is dedicated to include the Provision of Children and Adults.
- He asked if family carers are entitled to day services.
- Respite – there appears to be a local problem and adverse comments were coming from carers of children. When is North Lincs going to supply more respite facilities for children?
- It is felt that a full time support worker is needed. Joanne Robinson explained that this would have to come from the Carers’ grant. John Hankinson asked if the family carers can have a say in how the grant is spent.
- An event for primary carers has been set up. At this event Joanne Robinson will ask them how they want the money to be spent.
- Aim to engage carers in consultation around services in N.Lincs and to Revisit Carers Assessment.
Joanne Robinson is trying to set this up before the end of March 2004.
- John Hankinson is attending a Carers’ event in London next week.
11. Decide on themes for the next Partnership Board meeting
Themes for May 2004:
- Health Action Plans – Mike Griffiths
- Transitions – Martin Patrick
Themes for August 2004:
- Carers Workshop
- Employment
11. Any other business
There was no other business discussed.
12. Dates of future Partnership Board meetings
These were agreed as: 9am to 1pm on:
- 21 May 2004
- 27 August 2004
- 19 November 2004
All workshops will be held at the Kingsway Centre, Scunthorpe and will include a sandwich lunch at 1pm.
Post Meeting
1. Carers event for primary carers is to take place on 21 April.
2. Joanne explored feedback from Jane re: Time for Action and individuals wishing to attend. At this time no new users wish to attend.