The Health and Social Care Scrutiny Sub-Committee is scheduled to discuss adult social care complaints, the co-production of a suicide and self-harm prevention strategy, an adult safeguarding update, and the vaccination programme in Harrow. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at the Harrow Council Hub.

Vaccination Programme

The sub-committee is scheduled to receive a report on vaccination coverage in Harrow, which will include data on both winter and childhood immunisations. The report notes that while Harrow has made progress in reducing measles cases and improving MMR uptake, coverage across most childhood vaccines remains below the World Health Organization's (WHO) 95% target and lags behind neighbouring boroughs such as Hillingdon and Hounslow.

The report pack states that the council plays a vital role in improving vaccine uptake by:

• enhancing local health promotion efforts
• supporting outreach in underserved communities
• working with schools, nurseries and faith groups

The report also notes that North West London Integrated Care Board (NWL ICB) strategies and expanding access points such as community pharmacies and roving clinics can help to drive equitable vaccine uptake.

The report highlights that this year's flu season has presented significant public health challenges, with activity levels exceeding previous years.

UKHSA data indicates that flu deaths in England rose from 3,555 in 2023-2024 to 7,757 in 2024-2025.

Public Reports Pack

The report also notes that there are changes to the childhood immunisation schedule which will include the Varicella vaccine (Chicken-Pox) for all children from 12 months of age.

The sub-committee will be asked to note the report, as statutory evidence required by the Director of Public Health to ensure adequate arrangements are in place to protect the health of the population.

Adult Safeguarding Update

The sub-committee is scheduled to receive a report providing an update on improvements to adult safeguarding in Harrow. The report notes that there has been a noticeable rise in the need for Adult Social Care services, including those related to safeguarding, with a surge in demand of 65% over the last three years.

The report pack states that the council's improvement work has included working with partners to develop a model for a multi-agency safeguarding hub for adults, drawing on the lessons from children's social care.

The report also notes that the council has been working on:

• improving safeguarding supervision practice standards
• streamlining the referral process to create a single route
• updating the adult social care database functionality to improve recording
• further embedding the pan-London guidance to ensure consistency in our work
• strengthening timeliness of allocations
• further developing their whole-family approach to safeguarding
• ensuring they have the right quality assurance framework to underpin all of this

The sub-committee will be asked to note the report.

Co-Production Suicide and Self-Harm Prevention Strategy

The sub-committee is scheduled to discuss the development of the Harrow Co-produced Suicide and Self-harm Prevention Strategy. The report pack states that the strategy will help the system to understand local needs, identify gaps in prevention efforts across the life course, and support evidence-based, needs-led decisions. It will be informed and shaped by the voice of lived experience, ensuring that people with personal experience of suicide and self-harm are central to its design, delivery, and evaluation.

The report notes that the national suicide-prevention strategy (2023–2028) emphasises partnership working and measurable local strategies and plans. The last suicide prevention strategy for Harrow was in 2021, and the national strategy sets a clear directive for local authorities and systems partners to develop and deliver local suicide prevention and self-harm strategies and plans that reflect and respond to local needs.

The report pack states that the long-term suicide rate in Harrow has consistently remained significantly lower than the England average. Between 2022 and 2024, the Harrow suicide rate (5.7 per 100,000) remained well below the England average (10.9) and the London average (7.5). However, the Harrow rates for emergency hospital admissions for intentional self-harm are higher than the London rate.

The Harrow Mental Health and Learning Disability Board are supporting a partnership approach to mental health prevention, of which developing a co-produced suicide and self-harm prevention strategy is a key priority. The driving partners are Harrow Council, Mind in Harrow, Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust (CNWL) and the voices of lived experience.

The sub-committee will be asked to endorse the collaborative approach to the production of the suicide and self-harm prevention strategy and the four pillars within the strategy: prevent, identify, equip and support.

Adult Social Care Complaints

The sub-committee is scheduled to receive a report providing an update on adult social care complaints in Harrow. The report provides an overview of the council's performance on Adult Social Care complaints and feedback activity between 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025.

The report notes that the overall number of complaints and enquiries has increased slightly from the previous year, from 110 stage 1 complaints to 139 this year. During 2024/25, weekly updates detailing the analysis of complaints and representations have been shared with senior management, with a focus on improving response timescales and accountability for completion of responses. Performance in this area has improved with 100% completion rates evident in some quarters.

The sub-committee will be asked to note the report.