North Yorkshire Council

North Yorkshire Health and Wellbeing Board

16^th May 2025

Health Protection Assurance Group Annual Report

Report of the Director of Public Health

1.0       PURPOSE OF REPORT

1.1 The purpose of the Health Protection Assurance Group Annual Report is to support the Director of Public Health’s statutory assurance function on Health Protection across North Yorkshire by demonstrating work undertaken by partners across the system during 2024-5.

2.0       BACKGROUND

2.1       The North Yorkshire Health Protection Assurance Group (HPAG) is a multi-agency forum providing strategic oversight across the individual parts of the health protection system in North Yorkshire. The group is chaired by the Director of Public Health, who has a statutory role to maintain assurance on health protection issues across the County.

2.2       The purpose of the HPAG annual report is to provide evidence to support the Director of Public Health in fulfilling their statutory assurance function on health protection for North Yorkshire, whilst summarising the work of the wider assurance group over the last year (24/25). In doing so the report also highlights the key risks, challenges and gaps across the system, which in turn help determine the priorities for the assurance group for the next year (25/26) as set out at the end of the report.

3.0       ISSUES

3.1       The report highlights work that has progressed against the key priorities for 2024-25. These include restarting military health liaison group meetings, completion of the NYC Air Quality Action Plan 2024-29, improved intelligence sharing between partners, and collaborative working on multi-agency communications. Some key priorities for 2024-5 will be continued into 2025-6, including development of the Air Quality Strategy and ongoing work on infection prevention and control.

3.2       During 2024/5 partners from across the system have worked together to tackle active health protection incidents, and also to strengthen underlying mechanisms to support health protection responses. In response to challenges identified as part of the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been both single and multi-agency reviews of current gaps and challenges in health protection provision, for example through the Local Health Resilience Partnership. This has led to work to improve both local response plans and also front-line health protection capabilities, which will support management of health protection incidents from single cases through to pandemics.

3.3       Recent announcements regarding the future and funding of many of the key organisations involved in local health protection work, including NHS England and Integrated Care Boards, may also have an impact on local health protection responses. Despite this, partnership working remains strong and a key pillar of assurance for health protection in North Yorkshire and wider regional work.

3.4       Priorities for HPAG for 2025-6 include assessment of the local health protection system against the ADPH What Good Looks Like for Health Protection framework, preparation for and participation in Exercise Pegasus (national pandemic exercise, autumn 2025), Specialist Sexual Health Service Section 75 Partnership extension, and supporting the implementation of the revised national immunisations schedule (expected later in 2025).

4.0       IMPACT ON OTHER SERVICES/ORGANISATIONS

4.1       Whilst compiled by the NYC public health team, this report contains contributions from other internal and external partners and organisations who also perform key functions around health protection in North Yorkshire.

5.0       FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

5.1       Whilst there are no specific financial implications in the report, it may influence future service design and commissioning across the system, particularly in relation to areas where gaps and challenges have been identified.

6.0       LEGAL IMPLICATIONS

6.1       None noted.

7.0       EQUALITIES IMPLICATIONS

7.1       The HPAG annual report notes specific pieces of work undertaken in response to health inequalities, for example a focus on increasing uptake of screening and immunisations in Scarborough, and targeted work with migrant communities on vaccinations and mental wellbeing provision.

8.0       CLIMATE CHANGE IMPLICATIONS

8.1       Climate change is one of the areas highlighted in the report, noting the work that the NYC public health team is undertaking to embed public health considerations into climate change work both internally to the council and across the wider system.

9.0       PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS

9.1       The report makes recommendations for key areas of focus for 2025-26. Progress against these key areas will be reviewed in the next annual report.

10.0     RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS

10.1     The HPAG annual report forms part of the assurance process against health protection risks across North Yorkshire, as part of the Director of Public Health’s assurance function.

11.0     REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS

11.1     The Health & Wellbeing Board provides strategic oversight to multi-agency efforts to improve the health and wellbeing of the North Yorkshire population. Health protection is a key area within this – it is important that the Board has oversight of ongoing work to tackle health protection risks across the County.

12.0	RECOMMENDATION(S)
	i) That the Health & Wellbeing Board notes the content of the Director of Public Health Annual Report 2023-24.

            APPENDICES:

Appendix A – Health Protection Assurance Group Annual Report 2025

Louise Wallace

Director of Public Health

County Hall

Northallerton

6^th May 2025

Report Author – Dr Victoria Turner, Public Health Consultant

Presenter of Report – Dr Victoria Turner, Public Health Consultant