The Leicester City Health and Wellbeing Board met on 5 June 2025, to discuss several key issues impacting the health and wellbeing of the city's residents. The board approved the Better Care Plan 2025-26 and the draft Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment for consultation, and members heard presentations on health inequalities and nursing care standards. A key focus was placed on addressing gambling harms, with a presentation from Annie Ashton, who shared her personal experience of losing her husband to gambling-related suicide.

Gambling Harms Needs Assessment

The board received an overview of the Leicester City Gambling Harms Needs Assessment, outlining the health needs of the local population, existing support services, and recommendations for further action. The board was asked to support the development of a strategy to prevent and reduce gambling harms in Leicester.

Key points from the assessment included:

• An estimated 1,500 people in Leicester may be experiencing problem gambling.
• Problem gambling is associated with worsened mental health, alcohol and substance use, and a higher risk of suicide.
• Leicester has a larger-than-average proportion of residents aged 16-34, living in deprived areas, or unemployed, all factors associated with increased risk of problem gambling.
• Data indicated Leicester is in the highest quintile for problem gambling prevalence but lowest for demand for treatment.

Annie Ashton, who lost her husband to gambling-related suicide, spoke of the need to ask about gambling when people show signs of distress, depression or suicidal thoughts. She also highlighted the importance of coding gambling issues correctly in medical records.

Councillor Elaine Pantling, Assistant City Mayor for Education, expressed her support for the strategy, having witnessed the misery gambling addiction can bring to families.

Paul, whose last name was not provided, highlighted the need to frame gambling as an industry preying on poor people and communities, and called for brave political decisions to stop exposure to gambling adverts. He also mentioned the work of Brent Council in requesting reforms around gambling harms.

Rob Howard, Director of Public Health, said the council received a letter from Brent Council and were supportive of it, but wanted to take it through the proper political process to get full support.

The board agreed to send a strong letter of support to the Neighbourhood Board and request a progress report in six months. Councillor Vi Dempster, Assistant City Mayor, said she did not like meetings without actions.

The board also discussed the need for better data on gambling, with Lynn, whose last name was not provided, committing to working with general practice to improve coding of gambling issues. Dr Ruw Abeyratne, Director of Health Equality and Inclusion at UHL, offered support from a secondary care perspective.

Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment

The board was asked to approve the draft Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) for a 60-day statutory consultation period. The PNA reviews pharmacy coverage and services in Leicester City, finding that overall provision is adequate but there are differences in local provision of services across the city.

Key recommendations from the PNA included:

• Working with NHS England and the Integrated Care Board (ICB) to review areas with fewer pharmacies, services, and lower opening hours.
• Reviewing cross-city and county-border service provision to ensure uniformity of access and quality.
• Working with the ICB and Primary Care Networks to tackle health inequalities and digital literacy.

Kevin Allen-Khimani, Chief Executive for Voluntary Action Leicestershire, suggested exploring different models for consultation to get more voices heard.

The board discussed opportunities to tackle waste and improve compliance with medication, with Helen Mather, Associate Director of Elective Care, Cancer and Diagnostics, suggesting that medication reviews with pharmacists can be more effective than with GPs.

The board also discussed the importance of coding gambling as the primary issue, rather than debt or financial problems, to ensure better prevention and treatment.

Nursing Care Standards

The board received a report providing an overview of current care standards at University Hospitals Leicester (UHL), highlighting actions being taken to drive improvements and outlining tools in place to support and assure quality of care.

Dawn Angliss, Deputy Chief Nurse Operations, presented the report, which focused on hospital-acquired pressure ulcers and falls. She noted that UHL had seen a huge rise in hospital acquired pressure ulcers a couple of years ago, but had made significant improvements through new equipment and training.

Lee Walker, a consultant at UHL and the Deputy Medical Director for urgent and emergency care, provided context on the pressures the hospital is under, with rising attendances to the emergency department and increasing difficulties in conveying patients into the department from ambulances.

Councillor Elaine Pantling expressed concern about corridor care and its impact on both patients and staff.

The board discussed the need to reduce demand on the emergency department through prevention and integrated services, and the importance of multi-professional teams in delivering fundamental care.

Better Care Plan and Better Care Fund

The board endorsed the Better Care Plan 2025-2026, submitted by the Director of Adult Social Care and Safeguarding. The plan outlines how health and social care services will work together to improve outcomes for people in Leicester.

The board also received an update on the Quarter 3 data for the Better Care Fund¹.

Health Inequalities Using Social Prescribing

Nisha Mistry, the Digital and Transformation Lead for Lesser City Health, presented a report on a population health management approach to addressing health inequalities using social prescribing. The report focused on two projects: 3 Conversations and a multi-morbidity population support initiative.

The 3 Conversations project aimed to improve outcomes and reduce unwarranted variations between cohorts by identifying and supporting patients not engaging with general practice services. The project involved listening to patients, connecting them with resources, and supporting them to live independently.

The multi-morbidity population support initiative focused on patients aged 18-64 with five or more long-term conditions, including mental health diagnoses. The project used focus groups to understand the challenges these patients faced and to co-produce interventions.

The board praised the work being done and discussed how to mainstream the approach and demonstrate its economic value.