Issue - meetings

Report CS18198

An update on the development of the Joint Strategy for Ageing Well in Bromley 2019-24 was provided to the Board by Mark Davison, Interim Head of Programme Design (ECHS).

The Joint Strategy for Ageing Well in Bromley 2019-24 was being developed by the Local Authority in partnership with the Bromley Clinical Commissioning Group to provide an integrated strategic approach for ageing well in Bromley.  The development of the strategy had been informed by a comprehensive engagement process undertaken during Summer and Autumn 2018, following which a portfolio of Ageing Well projects had been co-designed with key partners and members of the community.  Consultation on the final draft of the strategy would be taken forward during late 2018, with the expectation that the final Joint Strategy for Ageing Well in Bromley 2019-24 and accompanying delivery plans would be agreed and published in Spring 2019.

The Board discussed ways in which socially isolated Bromley residents could be identified and supported.  A range of projects were delivered by the community and voluntary sector including ‘Community Connectors’.  Diverse leisure opportunities were also available through Mytime Active’s Primetime scheme, and Royal Mail had recently launched a scheme through which postmen checked on vulnerable residents.  A Board Member recognised that social prescribing was increasingly used to improve the health and wellbeing of the elderly frail, and emphasised the need for the Joint Strategy for Ageing Well in Bromley 2019-24 to reach the most socially isolated Bromley residents.

The Interim Head of Programme Design (ECHS) noted that Frome in Somerset had seen a dramatic fall in emergency hospital admissions since it launched a collective project to combat social isolation and that a similar approach might prove beneficial for Bromley, particularly in the Borough’s more rural communities.

The Chairman queried how the Health and Wellbeing Board could best support the Joint Strategy for Ageing Well in Bromley 2019-24.  The Interim Head of Programme Design (ECHS) advised that the strategy would be launched in April 2019 and that the Board’s involvement would be welcomed.  Board Members would have a key role in promoting the Joint Strategy for Ageing Well in Bromley 2019-24, and a Board Member suggested that Members were well-placed to identify vulnerable residents within the community, which could include those with mobility issues or caring responsibilities.  Another Board Member underlined the need to draw on the enthusiasm created during the consultation and co-design stages of developing the Joint Strategy for Ageing Well in Bromley 2019-24.

RESOLVED that the update be noted.