Agenda item

The Annual Safeguarding Adult Board Report is attached, alongside a cover report.

Deborah Klee, Independent chair of Southwark Safeguarding Adults Partnership Board, will be attending to present the report, along with Jay Stickland, Director of adult social care.

6.1  Deborah Klee, the Independent Safeguarding Chair and Jon Newton, Acting Head of Quality & Transformation, presented the report. The chair then invited questions.

6.2  A member asked how the board is working and if attendance is good and the organisational representatives are at the right seniority. The Independent Chair said this was a good question to ask; the board has good health representation, but police attendance is an issue, as it was last year. She reported that she had held a recent meeting with a senior police officer and hoped that a corner had been turned. The London Ambulance Service is also lacking adequate representation.

6.3  A member raised concerns about home care and picking up incidents, and noted there was on going discussion on extending lay inspectors remit. The Independent Chair said there was work on the Ethical Care Charter to improve  working conditions and remarked that the Lay Inspectors work was valuable and this could be considered.

6.4  It was remarked the format of the report has changed and officers agreed that this has been changed and they would like to see more input from partners in future.

6.5  A member remarked that she was interested in the issue of compassion and asked how as a local authority we drive this culture. She added that sometimes senior people will want to change and people on ground, but there is a resistant middle layer. Jon Newton remarked that care management has often been about process driven management, whereas there is a new emphasis on outcome.

6.6  A member remarked it is not that clear who is engaged and asked if it is just members of the board or a wider group of agencies.  Jon Newton remarked that outside providers can access the training and it is broader than just the members, for example CAS represents the wider voluntary sector and their members can access safeguarding training. SLaM representative in the audience commented that SLaM has a 95% target for receiving training and the Independent Chair responded that this is monitored.  Southwark Carers Chief Executive added that her organisation access My Learning Source and it is valued. The member asked about the wider community such as rubbish collectors and caretakers, who have an indirect safeguarding role. The Independent Chair said that there is a community sub group and this is working on engaging wider frontline workers, such as housing tenancy workers. 

6.7  A CAS worker commented that it was agreed that CAS would have a safeguarding secondment  and Jon Newton reported that an advert gone out , but not been successful , but this will be repeated; it is possible a gradate will be recruited. 

6.8  Members asked about how service users with dementia might report safeguarding concerns when the words have gone and only emotion remains. Jon Newton remarked that this is one of the most challenging areas as it is about picking up on non verbal communication and other triggers when working with people with dementia or learning difficulties. The Independent Chair commented that when looking at making safeguarding personal we need to look at this angle and ensuring there is advocacy.

6.9  A member asked about service user involvement and Jon Newton commented that a survey is being sent out to users and carers and the Board have started working with a small group, but it is not systematic at the moment. The Independent Chair commented that there is an annual conference and issues are picked up there.

6.10  The Independent Chair was asked if there was a lay union member on the board to represent care workers and she responded that representation is more focused at a strategic level from the local authority. The member responded that the perspective would be operational, but the input would be strategic. The member went on to raise concerns about 15 minute care packages. Jon Newton commented that this practice has ended, although possibly beyond the remit of the board. He also commented that abuse from paid carers is an issue. The Independaent Chair remarked that often community voluntary organisations do raise concerns,  which the board value and she reiterated that the board do want to pursue the post that CAS referred to.

6.11  A member raised the potential of Care and Patient Opinion to raise concerns. She went on to remark that she had recently found the Safeguarding service exemplary and referred to a piece of case work she had carried out.

RESOLVED

Reports on the following will be provided

-  A response to the recommendation that there is a union representative on the Safeguarding Board to represent staff

-  Work being undertaking to encourage Safeguarding awareness amongst frontline staff, such as caretakers, housing officers and refuse workers.

-  Service user engagement with  the Safeguarding Board and its work programme