North Yorkshire Outbreak Management Advisory Board

Notes of the remote meeting held on Thursday 24^th February 2022 at 2.00 p.m.

THOSE WHO JOINED THE DISCUSSION:

North Yorkshire County Council Representatives:

County Councillor Carl Les, Leader, North Yorkshire County Council (Chair)

County Councillor Michael Harrison, Executive Member for Adult Services and Health Integration

County Councillor Andrew Lee, Executive Member, Public Health, Prevention, Supported Housing

Victoria Turner, Public Health Consultant

Louise Wallace, Director of Public Health

District Council Representatives:

Councillor Richard Foster, Leader, Craven District Council

Councillor Dinah Keal, Ryedale District Council

Councillor Ann Myatt, Harrogate Borough Council

Other Partners’ Representatives:

Jane Colthup, Chief Executive, Community First Yorkshire

John Pattinson, Independent Care Group (substitute for Mike Padgham)

Sue Peckitt, Chief Nursing Officer, North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group (substitute for Amanda Bloor)

Helen Simpson, Chair, York and North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership

Tom Thorp, Interim Assistant Chief Executive and Deputy Monitoring Officer, Office of the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (substitute for Zoe Metcalfe)

Lisa Winward, Chief Constable

Ian Yapp, Chief Education Officer, the STAR Multi-Academy Trust

In attendance (all from North Yorkshire County Council, unless stated):

County Councillor Karin Sedgwick

Patrick Duffy, Principal Democratic Services Scrutiny Officer (Clerk)

Elaine Williams, Team Leader, Press and Publications

Apologies received from:

Amanda Bloor, Accountable Officer, North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group

Councillor Mark Crane, Leader, Selby District Council

Councillor Liz Colling, Scarborough Borough Council

Councillor Angie Dale, Leader, Richmondshire District Council

Richard Flinton, Chief Executive, North Yorkshire County Council

Ashley Green, Chief Executive Officer, Healthwatch, North Yorkshire

Zoe Metcalfe, North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner

Mike Padgham, Chair, Independent Care Group

Sally Tyrer, Chair, North Yorkshire Local Medical Committee

Richard Webb, Corporate Director, Health and Adult Services

Copies of all documents considered are in the Minute Book

NO.	ITEM
238	WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION BY THE CHAIR County Councillor Carl Les welcomed Members of the Board and any members of the public or media viewing the meeting.   He advised that he is the Leader of the Council and Chairs this Board and that:- - the main role of this Board is to support the effective communication of the test, trace and contain plan for the county and to ensure that the public and local businesses are effectively communicated with;   - decisions of the Board are purely advisory and its recommendations will be considered through the governance arrangements of the bodies represented, which retain their decision making sovereignty; - the papers for this meeting had been published in advance on the County Council’s website; and - the Board comprises, among others, representatives of the County Council; District and Borough Councils; the NHS; UK Health Security Agency; Schools; Healthwatch; the Care Sector; and the Voluntary Sector
239	APOLOGIES As stated in the attendance on the previous page.
240	DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST There were no declarations of interest.
241	NOTIFICATION OF ANY OTHER BUSINESS The Chair asked Members if they could advise him, at this stage, whether they had any item of urgent business they were likely to raise under that heading, so that he could ensure there was sufficient time at the end to consider it.  No Members indicated that they had any urgent business to raise.
242	NOTES OF MEETING HELD ON  17^TH JANUARY 2022 AGREED that these were an accurate reflection of the discussion.
243	VACCINATION UPDATE Sue Peckitt thanked the population of North Yorkshire for their fantastic response to the Vaccination Programme and updated as follows:- - Of the eligible population, 89.4% and 94.8%, respectively, have had their first and second dose and 84.9% have had their third dose/booster. - 41,424 people can still access the vaccine. The “Evergreen” Offer is still in place and those who have had yet had the vaccine are encouraged to come forward. - NHS England Guidance on continued access has recently been received. Many large sites have now closed and relocated to areas such as Community Pharmacies and GP Practices. Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) have been asked to consider what they can do to offer 5-11 year olds access to the vaccine, from April 2022 - with doses 12 weeks apart. They have also been asked to consider how to offer a spring dose for people aged 75 and over; for residents in Care Homes for Older Adults; and individuals aged 12 and over who are immuno-suppressed.  The CCG are working through how it will deliver this. - The vaccine continues to be offered to 12-15 year olds, of whom 66.6% and 32.8%, respectively, have received their first and second dose. The latter figure has been affected by the number of young people who had Covid-19, post- Christmas. - CCGs have also been asked to have Contingency Plans in place to rapidly increase capacity. The Programme remains dynamic and responsive to Guidance from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation. Councillor Ann Myatt referred to the number of doses that had not been taken up and asked if there was anything that Members could do to assist.  In response, Sue Peckitt advised that there has been a significant communication campaign and liaison with local businesses, but people are just not coming forward now.  Any suggestions by Members would be welcomed. NOTED.
244	UPDATE ON THE CURRENT POSITION IN NORTH YORKSHIRE  Slides were presented by Louise Wallace, which contained data on North Yorkshire daily cases; 7-day infection rates; and daily deaths. Louise highlighted the following aspects:- - There have been changes to isolation rules and we are now moving to living safely with Covid-19. - The position is much improved but there are still, on average, 301 daily cases. - North Yorkshire is tracking the England position, which it has done for the majority of the Pandemic. - We will continue to keep a close eye on the data, which may be affected by changes to testing and isolation. We are, though, now seeing a reduction on infections. - The number of people who died increased in January and February 2022, as a result of the Omicron Variant. Thankfully, this was not as high as in previous peaks. - A high vaccination uptake will maximise against the worst impacts of Covid-19. Victoria Turner added that the number of cases across all Districts in the county has come down – including among younger age groups.  We are seeing the very high numbers, that occurred in January 2022, reduce. The National Test and Trace Contact System ends today (24^th February) but Guidance remains that if people test positive they should isolate for ten days or follow existing Guidance around early release, if they test negative on a Lateral Flow Test from Day Five. A further step change in the Guidance is expected from 1^st April 2022 in Care and Educational Settings and Workplaces. Councillor Ann Myatt, enquired if it is possible to ascertain the proportion of the population who have some protection from infection – either through having been vaccinated or having had the virus.  Sue Peckitt said that it is possible to identify pockets of the population yet to come forward for their vaccine.  Pop-up Clinics and communications have been focussed on these areas.  Our approach is constantly reviewed and can be flexed as required. Victoria Turner added that if we combine the vaccination coverage with the number of people who have had Covid-19, a very high proportion are likely to have some degree of immunity, either from having had the vaccine, or from exposure to the virus – or both.  However, neither vaccinations nor previous infection (or both combined) provides complete immunity from reinfection, so there continues to be a level of risk. Sue Peckitt provided information on the largest age-range groups where people had still to come forward to receive the vaccine:- · 18-29 year olds – 8,489 outstanding · 30-39 year olds – 7,946 outstanding · 40-49 year olds -  5,008 outstanding In addition, among 12-15 year olds, 5,628 had still to come forward for their first dose. NOTED.
245	COMMUNICATIONS UPDATE Elaine Williams took Members through this report which had been circulated with the link to the papers for the meeting. In line with the national narrative on the Covid-19 response, we have moved our communications away from the ‘emergency’ response to embed key messages into our business as usual communications. There are a number of key themes, which we continue to promote, to support North Yorkshire through the next stage of the pandemic.  This includes sharing NHS-led material about vaccines to maximise the audience reach of this material. Isolation rules and guidance remain a key area for our residents, so proactive information about this is included in the set of messages we are now using across all our communication channels. This material is presented under the ‘Team North Yorkshire’ brand, to make it look and feel different from the emergency planning material we put in place in response to the Omicron variant.  The material is used in a number of different ways.  This includes being used across the digital channels we own and through other publications, such as the North Yorkshire Now Newsletter.  For the County Council, material is shared through staff communication channels, as the vast majority of colleagues are also residents of the county. As the Public Health Authority, the County Council has led on the creation of this latest set of material, but the Council continues to work closely with all Local Resilience Fund partners. For schools, updated information around isolation periods has been shared via Public Health’s Q&As and discussions, including webinar support, supported by some further vaccination support communications during January. At this stage, there are no plans to put in place any wider community messaging campaigns.  The existing Respect and Protect Campaign material will remain in place for a few more weeks. We will continue to keep the situation under review and can step-up the communications response if required. NOTED.
246	PARTNER UPDATES Business – Helen Simpson - Feedback from business as to recruitment issues and some evidence of wage inflation. - Concern about the increased energy costs and their impact. - Farmers have expressed concern about the effect of the War in Ukraine on wheat prices and animal feeds. - On the plus side, there has been an increase in the number of inward investment enquiries and a lot of High Streets are showing vibrancy. - Have met with the Rt. Hon. Michael Gove - Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations - and Civil Servants to discuss how the Levelling Up White Paper will work out across the North. - Active discussions about a regional bid for the Great British Railway and much activity around the next phase for York Central. Care Sector – John Pattinson - Guidance for Adult Social Care will be reviewed before 1^st April 2022. One of the concerns in the Sector is the potential for confusion in the medium and long-term and the possibility of Infection and Control Guidance being changed, which could affect the supply of free Personal Protective Equipment. NHS – Sue Peckitt - Operational Escalation Levels in Primary Care; Acute Care; Mental Health; and the Ambulance Service remain on high. There has been a significant increase in demand that services are being challenged to cope with, alongside sickness levels that are above normal. - Despite stepping down on the Guidance to the general public, the Guidance for Healthcare Settings does not change currently. That means that we will:- · continue wearing the same Personal Protective Equipment; · continue with the existing infection control measures; · continue supporting staff to isolate if they have Covid-19; · continue to require regular Lateral Flow Tests from staff and on patients to be admitted: and · continue asking patients to wear masks who come into Primary Care Settings and some Secondary Care Settings, where they are able to do  so. - The above bullet points are due to the recognition that Healthcare Settings are unique and have very vulnerable people accessing them. Police – Lisa Winward - Still seeing many calls in respect of people’s poor Mental Health - people in Mental Health Crisis; Suicides; and concern for safety.  We continue to see that as a pattern from a Police perspective - no doubt linked to how people are feeling and some of the effects that have occurred over the last two years. Schools – Ian Yapp - The Department for Education issued updated Guidance on 21^st February 2022 - following the Prime Minister’s announcement - and there have been two further updates this week, including today. - The Guidance for staff and most students for twice-weekly asymptomatic testing has been removed. - Staff and students of secondary age in Special Educational Needs and Disability Settings; Alternative Provision Settings and where there are Special Needs Units in mainstream Schools, are to continue with twice-weekly asymptomatic testing. - The channels to access tests through our own Public Health lines are still in place if an outbreak occurs. - From today, the requirement to self-isolate is no longer in place, but Schools should continue to communicate the advice message. - The Guidance is clear that from today all other operational controls remain in place in Schools, including, through to at least 1st April 2022, the requirement to have a Risk Register in place and plans for remote education to remain in place this Academic Year. - Enhanced controls, such as face coverings and reinstatement of testing, etc., may still be deployed on a case-by-case basis, in close liaison with Public Health, according to the individual situations within Schools. Voluntary and Community Sector – Jane Colthup - Continuing to work with health colleagues to increase capacity in the Scarborough and Harrogate areas around Home from Hospital Services and to strengthen the volunteering base, should another round of boosters be required. NOTED.
247	NEXT MEETING The Chair confirmed that the next meeting will be on Friday 25^th March 2022 at 2.00 p.m. NOTE: Following consultation with the Chair, the start time was subsequently put back to 2.30 p.m.
248	ANY OTHER BUSINESS There was no other business to consider.

The meeting concluded at 2.34 p.m.

PD