Issue - meetings

·         Report by the Independent Chair of East Sussex Safeguarding Adults Board

26.1     The Board considered a report by the Independent Chair of East Sussex Safeguarding Adults Board (SAB) providing an update on the progress to date on the delivery of the SAB Strategic Plan 2015-18.

26.2     The following key points emerged in response to questions from the Board:

·         SAB is carrying out an end of year review of its performance against its annual work plan 2015/16; any ‘Action/ Measure’ that has not been achieved will be added to next year’s work plan. Next year’s work plan will also include ‘success criteria’ so that the SAB can monitor its performance throughout the year.

·         The SAB carries out an ongoing and iterative process of identifying the current main safeguarding issues by examining the available data. This is because the data shows that the priority safeguarding issues change over time and are not just directed by national policy. The SAB also examines the data to identify safeguarding areas that have been under reported and acts to address them, for example, by carrying out specific work with home care agencies to increase the awareness of safeguarding issues amongst home care staff. Domestic violence and financial abuse – which are relatively recently recognised as priority areas in safeguarding – pose significant challenges that the SAB is working to address. 

·         The SAB has developed strong partnerships amongst its member organisations that enable those organisations to understand some of the potential impacts of funding reductions across the whole of the health and social care system. Individual organisations can use this collective information to coordinate and adjust the work that they do to minimise the effect of these funding reductions and make the best use of their available resources. 

·         Each GP practice must have a named adult safeguarding lead and all GPs must have been trained to Level 3 Safeguarding Training. Most GPs in East Sussex now operate a triaging system that ensures if a patient with a safeguarding issue is known to a GP, they will always be prioritised when trying to make an appointment.

26.3     The Board RESOLVED to note the report and its appendix.