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Tower Hamlets Health and Wellbeing Board - Thursday, 27th February, 2025 5.00 p.m.
February 27, 2025 View on council websiteSummary
This meeting was about the Health and Wellbeing Board considering updates on various health and wellbeing programmes in the Borough, and preparations for upcoming inspections of services for children with special educational needs. The meeting also included an update on mental health provision, and consideration of the minutes of the previous meeting.
Communities Keeping Well
The meeting was scheduled to receive a presentation about the Communities Keeping Well scheme.
The Communities Keeping Well scheme is being run by Tower Hamlets Council, with the help of funding from the North East London Integrated Care Board. It aims to improve health and reduce the likelihood of long-term health conditions in eight areas of Tower Hamlets that are thought to be at a greater risk of developing such conditions. These eight areas are:
- Old Ford
- Cambridge Heath
- Devons Road
- Collingwood
- Shadwell
- Harford
- Lansbury and Limehouse East
- Barkantine
The scheme is being run using an asset-based, co-production approach
, which means that it attempts to build on the resources that already exist in each area, and that it works with people who live in each area to achieve its goals.
As part of the scheme, Tower Hamlets has reportedly engaged with 850 residents and 100 stakeholders1 in these eight areas.
The report scheduled for consideration suggests that eight community voting days have now been held in the eight areas, during which local residents have reportedly selected 65 community-led projects to receive funding and support.
The report pack included a presentation about the scheme, which included a request for attendees to consider how their organisations can help residents make these projects successful.
Mental Health Provision
The Board was also scheduled to consider an update on Mental Health provision, which included details about:
- plans for an adult mental health needs assessment
- an update on work being done by the Tower Hamlets Suicide Prevention Steering Group
- the Mental Health Prevention Concordat2
Adult Mental Health Needs Assessment
The Mental Health Needs Assessment is to inform the refresh of the Adult Mental Health Strategy.
The needs assessment will try to answer the following questions:
- What is the level of mental health need in Tower Hamlets?
- What should be in place to meet the mental health needs of residents?
- What is currently in place in Tower Hamlets?
- What are the gaps in provision and what are the recommendations for improvement?
The report pack included a timeline for the needs assessment and the strategy refresh. The final needs assessment is reportedly expected by October 2025, and the new Adult Mental Health Strategy is expected to be finalised by early 2026.
Suicide Prevention Steering Group
The Suicide Prevention Steering Group has reportedly been working to deliver the strategic priorities of the Suicide Prevention Strategy 2023-2026.
The Group has recently reportedly revised its terms of reference, and agreed the following three priority areas for 2025:
- communications and information sharing
- support and processes in A&E
- data deep dive
The Suicide Prevention Steering Group is reportedly planning to provide an annual report to the Health and Wellbeing Board at the end of each year.
Mental Health Prevention Concordat
The Tower Hamlets Partnership Executive Group has reportedly agreed that the partnership should sign up to the Prevention Concordat for Better Mental Health.
The concordat is a national framework that aims to improve mental health by encouraging collaboration between local councils, integrated care boards, the voluntary sector, education, employers and the emergency services.
An action plan has reportedly been developed that sets out actions that partners across Tower Hamlets will reportedly take to promote better mental health.
SEND Partnership Inspection Preparation
The meeting was scheduled to receive a report about preparations for the upcoming inspection of services for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).
Our Last Inspection
The report pack included a summary of the findings from the last inspection, which was carried out in 2021 by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission.
The inspectors reportedly found that much of the support offered to children and young people with SEND in Tower Hamlets was of a good quality. However, they also reportedly identified several areas of concern, and issued Tower Hamlets with a Written Statement of Action.
Written Statement of Action
The report pack provided a summary of progress against the Written Statement of Action, and listed areas of ongoing work, including:
- improving internal systems and processes
- building on existing early help and intervention systems
- launching the Inclusion Framework with schools
- supporting children and families at transition points, including post-16 vocational opportunities
- streamlining the local offer, co-production and communication channels
- implementing the Delivering Better Value programme
- embedding innovation, including research projects
- securing sufficiency across local provision
What do we know about our next inspection?
The next inspection is expected to take place between May and December 2025.
The report pack includes a summary of what is expected during the inspection, including visits to health providers, and details of the post-inspection process.
How are we preparing for inspection?
Tower Hamlets has reportedly set up a fortnightly multi-agency inspection preparation group, chaired by Steve Reddy, Corporate Director of Children's Services.
The preparation group is also reportedly being attended by the SEND Strategic Lead of the North East London Integrated Care Board.
The report pack lists several other ways in which Tower Hamlets is reportedly preparing for the inspection, including:
- self-evaluation
- regularly updating a risk log
- assembling data and evidence
- undertaking multi-agency audit trails
Learning from other local areas
The report pack includes a summary of learning from inspections that have been carried out in other local authority areas, including the types of education settings visited, and the other services spoken to by the inspectors.
Ofsted ILACS Inspection Report & Youth Justice Plan Update
The Board was scheduled to consider a report providing an update on the Youth Justice Strategic Plan.
Introduction, vision and strategy
The report included an introduction and update to the Youth Justice Strategic Plan 2024-2025. It explained that the plan is based on feedback from children, practitioners and partners, and that it aims to:
ensure that our Youth Justice Partnership continually focuses on ‘unlocking potential, transforming lives’
The report provided information about the population, poverty and deprivation in Tower Hamlets and the City of London, and described the main challenges facing the Youth Justice Service.
Governance, leadership and partnership arrangements
The report explained how the Youth Justice Service is governed, and how it fits within the Council.
The service is located in the Children's Directorate, within the Supporting Families division. It is governed by the Youth Justice Executive Board, which is chaired by Steve Reddy, Corporate Director of Children's Services.
The report included a diagram showing the governance arrangements, and provided information about changes made to the management of the Service.
Update on the previous year
The report provided updates on progress made against the four priorities in the previous plan, these being:
- Child First: Embedding a Child First approach in every aspect of the Youth Justice Partnership
- Consistently Good Practice: Continuous raising of practice standards which achieves improved outcomes for children
- YJS Health Offer: Coordinated access and intervention to universal and specialist health provision to meet children’s holistic health and wellbeing needs
- Post 16 Education Offer: Increasing children’s participation in post 16 education, training and employment which support children’s aspirations, desistance and safety
Performance over the previous year
The report included information about the characteristics of the children the Youth Justice Service is working with, and data about local and national performance, including data on:
- First Time Entrants
- Re-offending
- Use of custody
- Children at risk of serious youth violence
- Education provision
- Children not in education, training or employment (NEET)
Plan for the forthcoming year
The report set out a plan for the forthcoming year, with sections on:
- Consistently Good Practice
- Our Commitment to Child First
- Prevention
- Diversion
- Children from groups which are over-represented
- Health
- Post 16 Education, Training and Employment
Resources and services
The report provided information about resources available to the Youth Justice Service, and explained that the Service has not yet been informed by the Youth Justice Board as to the value of its Youth Justice Core Grant.
Board development
The report described changes and developments made to the Youth Justice Executive Board over the last year, and set out plans for the next 12 months, which include closer links between the Board and YJS practitioners.
Workforce Development
The report explained that a Youth Justice Service specific Workforce Development strategy is being developed. It described training that has been provided to the service over the last year, including the Child First UNITAS Award, which 89% of YJS staff have reportedly completed.
Evidence-based practice and innovation
The report described innovation and best practice in the Council and across the Youth Justice Service.
Evaluation
The report explained that the service has been evaluated by several external bodies over the last 12 months, including the Youth Justice Sector Improvement Partnership (YJSIP), Bravespace and the Youth Justice Board.
The report included a summary of the key findings from the YJSIP peer review, and a list of areas for improvement, which are reportedly to be incorporated into the YJS Delivery Plan 2024-2025.
Minutes of the Previous Meeting
The Board was also scheduled to confirm the minutes of the previous meeting of the Health and Wellbeing Board, which was held on 10 December 2024.
The previous meeting received reports on:
- Physical Activity
- Safeguarding Adults Board Annual Report 2023-24
- Safeguarding Childrens Partnership Annual Report 2023
- Improving alignment between Health & Wellbeing Board and Tower Hamlets Together
- People First - Strategic Vision 2035
Please note that this article only summarises what was scheduled to be discussed in the reports pack provided for the meeting. It does not describe what was actually discussed or decided during the meeting.
Attendees









Topics
No topics have been identified for this meeting yet.
Meeting Documents
Reports Pack
Additional Documents