The Health and Wellbeing Board of Devon Council met on Thursday 16 April 2026 to discuss a range of important public health matters. Key topics included the development of a new dementia strategy, plans for suicide prevention across Devon, Plymouth, and Torbay, and initiatives to create a smoke-free South West. The Board was also scheduled to receive updates on the Better Care Fund and the Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy implementation.

Devon Dementia Strategy

The Board was set to consider and comment on Devon's Dementia Strategy, titled 'Devon Dementia Strategy April 2026-March 2029'. This strategy aims to improve the quality of life for those affected by dementia in Devon by raising awareness, ensuring timely diagnosis and support, enhancing care quality, providing support for families and caregivers, fostering dementia-inclusive communities, and offering personalised end-of-life care. The strategy outlines a vision for Devon to be a leading dementia-inclusive county, where people with dementia live fulfilling lives with dignity and respect, are supported by integrated care and communities, and where families and unpaid carers have access to necessary resources and guidance.

The strategy details a 'Well Pathway for Dementia' with five key areas: preventing dementia, diagnosing well, supporting well, living well, and dying well. It identifies strategic actions and deliverables for each of these areas, including increasing awareness of dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI), encouraging NHS Health Checks to detect dementia risks, reducing the use of high-risk medications, and supporting dementia research. For diagnosis, the plan aims to meet the national target for dementia diagnostic rates, reduce stigma, increase assessments for people with Down's syndrome, and reduce waiting times for diagnosis. The 'Supporting well' section focuses on delivering high-quality, person-centred dementia care, prioritising non-drug treatments, embedding John's Campaign across care settings, and improving post-diagnosis support. The 'Living well' section aims to make Devon an age-friendly community, recognise and support unpaid carers, and ensure adequate respite care. Finally, the 'Dying well' section focuses on enabling people with dementia to prepare for the end of life, ensuring their wishes are recorded and respected, and supporting unpaid carers throughout their journey.

One Devon Suicide Prevention Strategic Plan

The Board was scheduled to review and ratify the 'One Devon Suicide Prevention Strategic Plan 2026-2031'. This plan has been co-developed by system partners and aligns with the national Suicide Prevention Strategy for England. It aims to coordinate action across Devon, Plymouth, and Torbay to reduce suicides, improve emotional wellbeing, support individuals with mental health issues, and provide support for those bereaved by suicide. The plan is underpinned by principles of localised delivery within a system-wide framework, collaborative working, meaningful involvement of people with lived experience, equity and inclusion, and evidence-informed practice. The report highlighted that Devon has a suicide rate of 13.5 per 100,000 population, which is statistically higher than the England rate.

A separate update on DCC Suicide Prevention Programme activity was also presented, detailing developments since July 2025. This included a VCSE Assembly awareness session, the launch of a 'mental health safety plan' resource, and the procurement of mental wellbeing and suicide prevention training, including Connect 5, Youth Connect 5, and ASIST. The update also provided suicide data for Devon, indicating that Exeter and Mid Devon have the highest district suicide rates.

Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy Implementation

The Board was asked to approve the approach for implementing the 'Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy 2026-2035'. This strategy is built on four CORE principles: Caring for people and places, Opportunities for all, Roots for Life, and Engage and Empower. The four priority themes are Mental Health and Wellbeing, Start Well, Live Well, Housing, and Rural Areas and Access to Services. The implementation plan involves identifying facilitators and Board Member Champions for each priority theme, mapping the partnership landscape, developing action plans, and creating a scorecard to monitor progress.

South West Smoke Free Charter

The Board was requested to note the progress report of the Smokefree Devon Alliance and agree to sign the 'South West Smoke Free Charter'. This charter is a commitment by senior health leaders across the South West to take coordinated strategic action to tackle tobacco dependence, with the aim of achieving a smoke-free South West (<5% prevalence) by 2030. The progress report highlighted record demand for specialist support services, expansion of services in Torbay, mobilisation of the Smokefree Generation programme, and the successful roll-out of a shared 'Smoke Free' app. The Charter aligns with the WHO MPOWER principles for tobacco control.

Better Care Fund Update

An update on the Better Care Fund (BCF) for 2025/26 was presented, detailing progress on agreed plans for emergency admissions, discharge delays, and residential admissions. The report indicated that Devon remains on target for reducing emergency admissions and discharge delays. However, the county was not on track to meet its target for long-term admissions to care homes, with work ongoing to address this. The report also outlined the BCF budget for 2025/26, which totals £134.299 million, and detailed the spend against various schemes.

NHS Devon Update

An update from NHS Devon was scheduled to be provided verbally.

Other Matters

The Board was also due to review the Council's Scrutiny Work Programme and consider its Forward Plan.