This meeting of the Health & Wellbeing Board and ICB Sub-Committee covered a range of topics, including community support, a national health programme, winter planning, a public health peer review, pharmaceutical needs, and the borough's manifesto. The board agreed to publish the Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment for 2025-2028 and noted the progress on the implementation of the Local Government Association Peer Review Team's eight recommendations.

Community Support

Ansarun Ahmed spoke about her community work, particularly with the Women's Coffee Morning, highlighting its impact on reducing isolation and improving women's confidence. She requested support for transport, a women-only space for activities, and free access to services and courses. She also raised concerns about long waiting times at local Accident and Emergency (A&E) departments, leading some to travel to the Royal London Hospital, and asked the board to look into improving the local A&E service.

Councillors and board members praised Ansarun Ahmed's work and discussed potential funding sources and ways to support community groups, including exploring social value clauses in procurement contracts. Dr Shanika Sharma suggested that the board should encourage community groups to be sustainable by themselves. Councillor Maureen Worby, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, Health and Housing, offered to attend a protected time meeting with GPs to discuss housing issues.

National Neighbourhood Health Implementation Programme

The board celebrated Barking and Dagenham being selected as one of 43 areas for the national pilot around neighbourhood working¹, with Councillor Maureen Worby calling it so big for us . Fiona Taylor, Chief Executive (Place Partnership Lead), said that the selection really shows our ambition and what we want to achieve . The pilot will focus on long-term conditions and involve the community and other partners. The Barking Community Hospital site was chosen for the first pilot, as it already has 90% of the required services on one site.

The board agreed to Fiona Taylor's recommendation to confirm their commitment to the partnership and hold another development session. They also discussed the need for effective communication about the programme to frontline staff and residents. Dr Jagan John suggested that the board use the programme as a platform to highlight the pressures and challenges faced by Barking and Dagenham to national bodies.

Winter Plan 2025/26

Kelvin Hankins presented the Barking and Dagenham Winter Plan 2025/26, detailing actions to support residents during the winter period. Key initiatives include embedding a proactive care approach, using the Eclipse tool for risk stratification, and providing universal care plans² for residents under proactive care. The plan also involves partnering with a voluntary sector organisation to conduct access visits and mobilising the Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) hub.

The board discussed various aspects of the plan, including care home support, home care, vaccinations, and falls prevention. Pooja Barot asked about support for home care residents, while Councillor Fee Worby inquired about health navigators. Dr Jagan John raised concerns about data confidentiality and the need for clear communication with residents about universal care plans. Manisha Modhvadia suggested conducting asthma reviews in non-GP settings.

LGA Public Health Peer Review

Matthew Cole, Director of Public Health, provided an update on the implementation of the Local Government Association (LGA) Peer Review Team's eight recommendations, as detailed in the LGA Public Health Review Update Report. He noted that some recommendations are now integrated into the neighbourhood plan bid. The board noted the progress made.

Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment 2025-2028

Joanne Broadbent presented the Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) 2025-2028, a statutory document assessing the pharmaceutical needs of the local population. The assessment concluded that there are currently sufficient pharmaceutical services in Barking and Dagenham, but recommended an additional pharmacy in Barking Riverside and Beam wards once the number of new homes reaches 2,000.

Dr Jagan John raised concerns about the lack of GP input in the questionnaire and the need to improve the Pharmacy First scheme. He also highlighted the issue of people who do not live in the borough getting their prescriptions filled locally. Matthew Cole clarified that the PNA primarily determines whether new pharmacies can be commissioned. The board agreed to publish the PNA.

Borough Manifesto Update

Glen Oldfield presented an update on Our B&D: Building Communities and Driving Opportunities, the new borough manifesto. The manifesto focuses on six high-level outcomes: reduced child poverty, inclusive economy, safer, cleaner borough, independent adulthood, stable and decent homes, and a healthier and fairer borough.

Councillor Worby offered to attend GP meetings to discuss housing issues. Cam Nurse raised concerns about loneliness not being a priority area, while Dr Jagan John emphasised the need to make the metrics usable for primary care. The board noted the update and agreed to revisit the topic with more detailed documents in the future.