Agenda and minutes

The Chairman, Councillor Dominic Barnes, welcomed everyone to the meeting and emphasised that the Community Board (CB) was the ‘voice’ for the area.  The Chairman explained that a large amount of work and actions were carried out by the action groups and the community board meetings were held to circulate the outcomes.  The meetings were themed; the meeting in July concentrated on the Ukrainian guests in the area and the theme for this meeting was health and wellbeing. 

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Alex Collingwood, Jocelyn Towns, David Johncock and Sophie Kayani; Lorna Coldwell, Hambleden Parish Council; Emma Hawkins, Marlow Wombles; Geoff Pegg, Wycombe District Neighbourhood Watch; Jacqueline Ford, Buckinghamshire Council; Annie Roy-Barker; Councillor Sue Wagner, Wooburn Green and Bourne End Parish Council and Anna Ditta, Buckinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service.

Councillor Stuart Wilson declared a personal interest as his wife worked for the Arc PCN (Bourne End and Wooburn Green Medical Centre).

To agree the minutes of the meeting held on 13 July 2022.

Resolved:  The minutes of the meeting held on 13 July 2022 were agreed as an accurate record.

To be presented by Sarah Winchester, Public Health Consultant.

Cllr Zahir Mohammed, Deputy Cabinet Member for Public Health and Ward Member for Chiltern Villages, stated that, as part of the health agenda, the meeting had a health and wellbeing theme to gain an understanding of what could be carried out to address the health inequalities in the South West Chilterns CB area.

Dr Sarah Winchester, Public Health Consultant, provided a presentation, appended to the minutes.  Sarah explained that health was determined by a range of factors and that only approximately 25% was attributed to the NHS/healthcare system. Other things were important e.g., the social and economic environment contributed to approximately 50% of people’s wellbeing.  Public Health moved from the NHS into the local authority in 2013 but still worked closely with the NHS.  There was a Health and Wellbeing Strategy which had three key themes; obesity and physical activity; cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mental health.   The Health and Wellbeing Board (HWB) involved the Council, NHS, Healthwatch and the voluntary sector. 

The Director of Health Annual Report 2022 was entitled ‘Hearts and Minds’ and covered heart disease prevention, stroke and dementia in Buckinghamshire.  CVD caused 1 in 5 deaths in Buckinghamshire and most could be prevented. 

Community Board profiles, specific to each board, were being refreshed and provided a large amount of local information.  Sarah highlighted that the CB profile webpage contained recommendations for initiatives which could be carried out to address the issues.  The meeting attendees were encouraged to be advocates for the recommendations and Sarah emphasised that feedback was welcome.  Please visit the webpage for information on how to become involved.

The number of flu cases was rising and Sarah stressed the importance of having the flu vaccination.  Over 177,000 flu vaccinations had been carried out in Buckinghamshire with a good uptake in the over 65s; 2-3 year olds were more vulnerable to flu and an increase in the number of children vaccinated was encouraged.

The number of covid cases was also rising but not translating into hospital admissions.  66% of the population in the SWC CB area had received the seasonal booster which was above the county average.  The list of vaccination sites was available here along with the link to the national booking system.   

The Chairman thanked Sarah for attending the meeting.

To be presented by Dr Penny MacDonald.

Dr Penny MacDonald, Managing Partner of the Marlow Medical Group; Accountable Clinical Director for Arc Primary Care Network (PCN), GP and Chair of FedBucks, provided a presentation, appended to the minutes.  Dr Macdonald explained that Arc Bucks PCN believed that a healthy, thriving community improved health and wellbeing. People that had a connection to their community were often empowered and had more control over their health and lives which built resilience. 

The Social Prescribing team were working hard mapping local groups in the community, adding these to the directory of services on their website and actively passing on that knowledge to the local community. 

The Social Prescribers ran 10 Talking Cafés a month, including four regular weekly Cafés that were in the heart of the communities they served. These cafés were drop in Cafés that social prescribers referred into and were also open to the wider public.  Many things were discussed at the Cafés and friendships formed, often leading to individuals joining other groups together. 

Arc Bucks PCN had over 100 Community Connectors including South Bucks Paramedics, local police, nurses, and the general public. The feedback received was “we never knew that there was so much out there”. The community connectors were informed members of the community who could signpost with confidence and knew what assets there were in their local community.

If everyone knew what was out there and worked together it would create a supportive community where everyone was an included valued member, this in turn could lead to volunteering opportunities and peer support. 

Arc PNC would be grateful for support in spreading this important message across the constituencies.

Action:  All 

The Arc Bucks PCN ran Community Connector training on a regular basis to spread this message and would be delighted to invite you to join them on their journey to reach as many people as possible. Community Connector Training - Arc Bucks PCN 

Arc PCN were also looking for individuals with knowledge, who may wish to help Map what local offers were available to add to their increasing Directory of services.   To find out more, visit their website Home - Arc Bucks PCN, Email; Communications@ArcBucksPCN.org or Call 01628 405518. 

The following key points were raised in discussion:

• Michelle Bewley, Community Development Lead, advised that it was possible to sign up to Community Connector events via ‘Event brite’.
• Any suggestions for advertising/attending an event that would attract an audience would be gratefully received.
• The biggest challenge for the PCN was in recruiting and retaining staff, particularly GPs.  Dr MacDonald stressed the importance of keeping the directory up to date and having the right people trained to be able to signpost residents and, in turn, reduce the workload on the NHS.
• In response to a question on whether the success of the programme could be measured, Dr MacDonald advised that it was based on a model carried out in Frome which had seen a reduction in non-elective hospital admissions.  Dr Winchester added that loneliness levels had  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

To be presented by Hannah Blatchly.

Hannah Blatchly, Service Manager for Live Well, Stay Well (LWSW), Parkwood Healthcare, provided a presentation, appended to the minutes.  Hannah explained that LWSW was a single point of access for healthy lifestyle referrals.  Digital support or face to face appointments were available for the many services on offer which included losing weight, getting more active, stopping smoking, healthy eating, alcohol reduction, children’s healthy weight etc. 

NHS Healthchecks for those aged between 40-74, without an existing health condition, were delivered within GP surgeries.  Parkwood Healthcare were commissioned to provide NHS Healthchecks at outreach locations e.g., libraries, community centres etc.  If anyone had other location suggestions for NHS Healthchecks, please contact Hannah - hannah.blatchly@nhs.net.

Referrals could be done online by a professional or a resident could self-refer by clicking on ‘register’.  Alternatively, phone 01494 490444.  Text ‘SMOKE’ to 60777 for help with stopping smoking, or text ‘CHECK’ to 60777 for a NHS Healthcheck. Contact would be made within 48 hours.

The Chairman thanked Hannah for her presentation.

To be presented by Aldo Simone, Trading Standards.

Aldo Simone, Bucks and Surrey Trading Standards, provided a presentation, appended to the minutes.  Aldo advised that Trading Standards prevented and safeguarded vulnerable residents from scams and supported scam victims.  Trading Standards worked in partnership with several other organisations to raise awareness.   Surrey Trading Standards provided an online training programme called ‘SCAMChampion training’ which trained people to give a presentation to people in their community.

There were many different types of scams which were differentiated by the way in which the criminal contacted the victim.  Once the fraudster had had a successful contact, the victim may be repeatedly targeted if the target facilitated the fraud to continue.  Several examples of scams were shown and the points to check were highlighted.  The main crux of the message was that links in any form of contact e.g., text, email, social media etc should not be clicked on; stop and think before responding to any random contact.  The level of sophistication was increasing and emails/messages appeared legitimate but when checking the sender’s email address, it was slightly different.  Trading Standards had seen a change in the type of scams; moving away from mail and doorstep and moving more to email, text message and social media. 

‘True call’, a call blocking device could be loaned to residents who had been subjected to nuisance phone calls; contact Trading Standards to request one.  Video doorbell cameras were available; their presence could often prevent fraudsters approaching.   Sticker packs were also available to deter traders; the benefit of a sticker was that it was legally enforceable, whereas ‘no doorstep selling’ zones did not carry the same legal weight.  Aldo stressed that residents should not accept random offers of financial help; they should always go to a bank or the Citizens Advice Bureau for financial advice.

The following key points were raised in discussion:

• The Chairman highlighted that there was a scam circulating regarding registering a credit card to pay for a covid test.
• Contact Makyla Devlin, Senior Community Board Manager, if you would like to receive door stickers.
• In response to a query on whether the door stickers provided enforcement against ‘Nottingham Knockers’, Aldo explained that anyone going from door to door should have a Pedlar Licence.  Any incidences of people door knocking without a licence should be reported to the Police.  It had been found that there was sometimes an uptake in the number of burglaries in locations where Nottingham Knockers had been active.
• It was noted that some housing associations/estates did not allow tenants to install video door cameras.  Aldo advised that sometimes just a sticker saying that CCTV was in operation was enough of a deterrent.
• Aldo confirmed that one of the main roles of Trading Standards was to provide individual support to victims of fraud.  Contact should be made with Aldo or Pei Harper or the Trading Standards Response Team - trading.standards@surreycc.gov.uk, aldo.simone@surreycc.gov.uk.  Makyla – do you have Pei’s email addresses please?

The Chairman thanked Aldo for attending and invited him  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

·         Buckinghamshire Council Update – to be presented by Steve Bambrick, Service Director and Community Board Champion.

·         Funding Update – to be presented by Makyla Devlin, Senior Community Board Co-ordinator.

·         Court Garden Leisure Centre Pool Liner – to be presented by Makyla Devlin.

·         Public Questions, received in advance, to be presented by the Chairman.

·         The Action Group updates are attached for information.

Buckinghamshire Council Update – Steve Bambrick, Service Director for Planning and Environment and Community Board Champion, highlighted the following:

• The ‘Helping Hand’ team at Buckinghamshire Council were available to provide advice and support to those experiencing financial hardship; contact via the online contact form or phone 01296 531151.  A range ofInformation was available on the Council website in relation to the cost of living.   Central government was also providing a support package – information available here.
• The Council libraries would be used as a ‘Welcoming Space’ for anyone and would provide a warm, welcoming and supportive space for anyone who needed it.  Everyone would be looked after with dignity and respect. 
• The new highways maintenance contractor from April 2023 would be Balfour Beaty.  58 projects had been agreed but not completed.  22 were rated as green and should be completed before the handover, 10 were rated as amber and were ready for the new contractor to take forward.  26 projects were rated red and would be reviewed.  There were another 55 projects on which a decision needed to be made. All the community boards had been asked to keep schemes on hold until the new contractor was in place and there was more clarity around the new process.
• Support for the Ukrainian guests was ongoing; there were 700 hosts accommodating 1200 Ukrainian guests in Buckinghamshire.  Sponsor arrangements were coming to an end and the Council was working closely with the Government to manage the impacts for the Ukrainian guests and the residents.  It was likely that the numbers would continue to rise.
• The Local heritage listings was a new initiative in the Council and a phase one local list would be coming out in December.   Anyone could nominate important assets in the county.

The following key points were raised during discussion:

• John Laker, representing Marlow Energy Group’s Solar Together project enquired about future funding.  Steve agreed to check and provide a response to John.

Action:  Steve Bambrick

• Olwen Elliott enquired about the status of two projects.  Steve offered to contact Olwen for the details and to provide a response.

Action:  Steve Bambrick

• Makyla Devlin requested that any queries related to the Westhorpe project be directed through Councillor Mark Turner. 
• Steve agreed to provide the community board with a list showing the rating of each project.

Action:  Steve Bambrick

Funding Update - The Chairman advised that £21,469 remained in the CB budget for 2022/23 and requested committee members spread the word that funding was available.  Match funding was required for any funding requests and all bids were to be submitted by 31 January 2023. 

The Proud of Bucks awards highlighted local heroes and the chairman thanked the Clare foundation for sponsoring and supporting the scheme.  A similar event would held next year and nominations could be submitted between 9 January and 12 February 2023. 

Any Other Business

Makyla advised that the swimming pool at Court Garden Leisure Centre would be closed from 12-18 December 2022 in order to correct  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

·         Wednesday 8 February 2023

·         Community Engagement Event – date TBC

8 February 2023.