Issue - meetings

The Leader introduced the Learning Disability Partnership in attendance to make a presentation to Cabinet and welcomed the opportunity to hear from its members.

The Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health, Mr Gibbens spoke to the item.  He also welcomed the officers and partnership members present.  He explained that he co-chaired the Learning Disability Partnership Board and he stressed the importance of the Board and the issues which it considered, such as transition, employment and skills.  He commended the recommendation to continue the work of the Board and further strengthen its activities.

Tina Walker, Co-Chair of the Learning Disability Partnership Board, asked that Penny Southern, Director of Learning Disability and Mental Health, address Cabinet.  Ms Southern thanked Cabinet for the opportunity afforded to the partnership to put forward the views of its members and to highlight issues of importance for people with Learning Disabilities in Kent.  She emphasised that people with Learning Disabilities not only wanted to be heard but wanted to participate in the improvement of services for themselves and their peers.

Members of the partnership and Ms Southern made representations on Health Services, Employment, Housing, Keeping Safe, Transport, Transition, Safeguarding, Finance and Voting; highlighting one issue, asking one question and evidencing one way in which people with Learning Disabilities had already helped to address the issue.  [The full presentation is published on line as an appendix to these minutes].

The Leader acknowledged the depth and breadth of the issues covered and the importance of the questions put to Cabinet.  Owing to the time constraints of the formal meeting environment he suggested that Cabinet Members provide full responses for those questions following the meeting.

He hoped that year on year services for those people with learning, and physical, disabilities were improving, acknowledging that there was more that could be done to support people to engage in the activities about which they had spoken.

The Cabinet Member for Specialist Children’s Services, Mrs Whittle spoke to the item.  She requested an opportunity to attend the Partnership Board in order to address the issues of transition and the newly produced single plan for Education, Health and Social Care more fully.   

The Cabinet Member for Education and Health Reform, Mr Gough, reported that the Health and Wellbeing Board had received a presentation from Ms Southern in October.  He conceded that take up of Health Checks by people with Learning Disabilities was not as high as he would like and work toward better understanding the health needs of people with Learning Disabilities, and to provide training of GPs and nurses was underway and would continue.  He welcomed the opening of new facilities at East Kent College, to which the Leader had previously referred and hoped that more, similar, facilities would be available in the future.

The Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Mr Dance addressed the issue of housing, raised during the presentation.  He was pleased to have been made aware of the issues that were being faced and would like to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 47