Reducing smoking levels and developing dementia friendly communities are among the achievements of the County Durham Health and Wellbeing Board (HWB) over the last 12 months. The board’s sixth annual report will be presented to Durham County Council’s Cabinet at a meeting in County Hall on Wednesday 16 October. The report outlines key achievements the HWB has made during 2018/19 and includes examples of work partners have undertaken or supported during that time.
It examines how the board has delivered against strategic priorities detailed in the Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy 2016/19 and explores the impact its work has had on people’s lives. Among the achievements highlighted within the report are:
• County Durham was chosen by the Local Government Association as one of 12 locations to pilot the Prevention at Scale pilot. One focus was on reducing the stigma and discrimination associated with mental health within communities.
• There has been a substantial reduction in smoking levels in County Durham and for the first time there is no significant difference between both regional and national averages. Currently 15 per cent of adults in County Durham smoke compared to a North East average of 16.2 per cent and the England average of 14.9 per cent.
• HWB partners have been working to further develop dementia friendly communities by raising awareness of dementia locally and delivering activities and events to improve the lives of people with dementia and their families. Four of the council’s area action partnerships have employed a dementia friendly communities co-ordinator, meaning there are now 19 working across the county and more planned over the coming years.
• The Active 30 Durham programme was launched in September 2018 and aims to increase physical activities among young people within a school setting. More than 100 schools have signed up to do at least 10, 20 or 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity with each pupil every day.
• In the summer of 2018, working with the Children and Families Partnership, the HWB piloted a new programme called Holiday Activities with Food to help tackle food poverty during the school holidays. This included publicising more than 177 activities with or without food across County Durham and developing a programme of activities with healthy food provision for some of the county’s most vulnerable children and young people.
Free healthy snacks were also on offer at council-run leisure centres with swimming pools and Clayport Library in Durham during half term in October 2018. The County Durham HWB was set up in April 2013. It includes representatives from the council, clinical commissioning groups, Healthwatch, NHS foundation trusts, County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service and the Police, Crime and Victims’ Commissioner. Cabinet will be asked to note the achievements and endorse the report.
