Agenda item

Members are asked to consider the information presented within the report and note the key issues described.

Dr Bruce Laurence addressed the Select Committee. A copy of the update can be found on their Minute Book and as an online appendix to these minutes, a summary of the update is set out below.

Family Nurse Partnership (FNP)

With our success in reducing the under 19 pregnancy rate, and with the increasing flexibility in the national model and licence requirements the FNP service has been able to widen its eligibility criteria.

The team are working closely with maternity services to ensure that women with vulnerabilities are identified early and referred appropriately and as this is a significant change the service will monitor the uptake closely as there are a maximum number of 80 places at any one time and the service is intensive from pregnancy through to age 2.

Mental health of boys and young men

In line with national guidance the BANES Suicide Prevention Strategy 2016-2019 highlights the importance of:

-  Integrating suicide prevention work within a broader framework for promoting mental health and wellbeing

-  Tailoring approaches to improve mental health in specific groups and reduce risk in high risk groups

These two priorities are reflected in a mini pilot focussing on boys and young men. Like elsewhere in England, in BANES men are three times more likely to die by suicide than women.  Evidence suggests there are a number of reasons why this might be the case.  Stigma around emotional distress and mental illness and social constructs of masculinity make it harder for men to manage feelings of depression or unhappiness in times of crisis and more reluctant to seek (or be seen to seek) help.  

The project seeks to identify good practice across services which will be shared with schools and other settings as case studies. Members of the project are committed to exploring how they can challenge stigmatising views that inhibit help seeking behaviours and make it difficult for boys and young men to talk about their feelings and worries within their setting.

Findings will be shared in an easy to use guide for schools and services and will include case studies and links to other resources.  The opportunity to develop some staff training during the summer term 2017 is also being explored.

Alcohol Control

Blue Light Change Resistant Drinker Training

During October over 90 frontline workers were trained in new approaches to supporting change resistant drinkers.. The demand for the training exceeded expectations and future dates are being planned for 2017.

Tobacco Control

Bath College Smoke Free City Centre Campus

Bath College City Centre site has been supported in its preparation for and implementation of a Smoke Free Site which went live on 5^th September 2016. Free prescriptions have been offered for staff wanting to quit and support for students has been promoted via fresher’s week. The College are also ran a whole college campaign during Stoptober. Reducing the number of regular smokers (baseline = 33% smoking at least 1 cigarette a week) is the whole college outcome identified for the DPH Award. The College also reduced the number of smoking shelters at the Somer campus and will be working towards that campus going smoke free by 2020.

National Child Measurement Programme

The output from this year‘s National Child Measurement Programme has just been published. The good news is that in relative terms we have a low level of overweight and obese children for the region, and the SW already has among the best rates in the country. We also have a good record of keeping the rises from reception to year 6 better than most (“we” being any or all of: children, parents, schools, health promotion, leisure services, and cultural and other influences). 

But the bad news is that our children are coming into reception relatively heavy, at an age when their diets are as much under parental control as they ever will be, and that although we benchmark well against other areas, in absolute terms this is a big problem in the making when almost 3 in 10 children leave primary school overweight… and many will face a lifelong challenge to then gain and maintain a healthy weight.

Holiday Hunger

Chrysalis Trust are offering families on free school meals the opportunity to have free lunches during the school holidays.  They are working out of St Michaels school, Twerton and Southdown Methodist church.  Funding is for one year.

Councillor Tim Ball said that the message regarding obesity in children must be delivered carefully and that children should retain a good level of weight. He welcomed the free lunches project as he was aware that some children return to school underweight after the school holidays.

Dr Laurence replied that work in schools was primarily around promoting healthy eating.

Councillor Paul May asked if it would be possible to widen out the free lunches project.

Dr Laurence replied that he would make enquiries.

Councillor Eleanor Jackson welcomed the proposal of Smoke Free Campus as she felt that the number of students smoking was frighteningly high. She added that similar work should be undertaken at the RUH with regard to the number of people that smoke between the main entrance and the bus stops.

Dr Laurence agreed that there is room for improvement at the RUH site.

The Chair thanked Dr Laurence for his update on behalf of the Select Committee.