Members of the public may ask questions or
make statements at this meeting if they have given notice and provided the text
to Melanie Carr of Democratic Services (contact
details below) no later than midday on Wednesday 19 October 2022. Each
speaker should limit themselves to 3 minutes on any item. Members of the public who have given notice will be invited to speak:
·
at this
point in the meeting if their questions/statements relate to matters which are
not otherwise on the Agenda (subject to an overall time limit of 30 minutes);
·
when the relevant
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the Agenda for this meeting.
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Minutes:
Mr Mark Harrison presented his public statement in relation to Agenda
Item 5 - An introductory report on the use of food banks, which read:
‘I am not familiar with the workings of NYCC and apologise if I have overlooked
or misunderstood something in this welcome report.
I am speaking as a concerned resident and volunteer for Hambleton
FoodShare. I shall not forget the
desperate reaction of a child rushing towards the carrier bags of food during
my first delivery.
It is good that
NYCC states: “We have four key ambitions for the North Yorkshire of 2021.
1 Every child
and young person has the best possible start in life;
2 Every adult has a longer, healthier and independent life;..”
It seems obvious, and consistent with these ambitions, that no one
should be hungry or malnourished.
However, it is not apparent that this is an agreed Goal of
NYCC.
No statements about such a goal or when it should be achieved are
evident. It is not clear what is deemed
to be an acceptable number of hungry or malnourished people.
Over 30 years ago, a transformation of belief took place in leading
high-hazard industries. Companies
switched from: “Some accidents will happen” to “All injuries and incidents are
preventable.” Lives and livelihoods were
saved by adopting best practices from around the world.
Loss prevention requires effective and constant management of Plans,
Organisation, Measurement, Investigation and Auditing. The report includes useful numbers and
descriptions but does not include, or refer to, a description of these elements
of strategy which are critical for the elimination of malnourishment.
It appears from item 4.10 of the report that the main immediate causes
of hunger and malnourishment are insufficient money, lack of ability/knowledge
and access. It is not known if there
are sufficient Resources within the County to achieve the
goal. No shortfalls are quantified. It is not known if sufficient action has
been taken with local MPs & national government to obtain the required
resources.
A chronically malnourished or stressed child may learn that their
welfare and development is not valued sufficiently. This is the wrong sort of investment in the
future.
“The Child who is not embraced by the Village will burn it down to feel
its warmth.” (African proverb)
This entirely preventable, severe and chronic suffering must be
averted. It appears that a radical
change is required.’
In response, Marie Ann Jackson, Head of Stronger Communities
confirmed the report to be considered
at Agenda item 5 related specifically to an issue raised about the usage of
food banks and other food support services across the county and whether the
issue of increasing dependency should be considered further. She noted the report was there to help inform
a decision on whether a more in depth scrutiny review should be undertaken, by
highlighting information gathered from a range of food support organisations
across the county over the past two years. She also noted that some of the
organisations operated in the traditional food bank model, whilst others were
relatively new, set up as a response to food insecurity – as distinct from food
poverty – during the pandemic.
She went on to
confirm the Stronger Communities team were carrying out some more detailed
research regarding the efficacy of the range of food support offers available
in the county - both with the organisations themselves and with the users of
the services.
In regard to the two
ambitions in the current Council Plan – “Every
child and young person has the best possible start in life”; and “Every adult
has a longer, healthier and independent life” Marie Ann Jackson noted
they were underpinned by priorities for action, for example:
·
A
commitment to continue to focus on closing the disadvantage gap, particularly
for children eligible for Free School Meals and Service Children; and
·
Working
with our partners to reduce disadvantage in the County; improve people’s
physical health and promote positive mental health and wellbeing. We will
build on existing sources of support around jobs, income and education so that
people have the same opportunities whatever their circumstances or where they
live.
She acknowledged that
food insecurity could manifest in a number of ways. For some it was driven by
insufficient income to meet their basic needs, for others it was driven by
access to affordable and healthy food, and for some their personal capacity to
prepare food.
She drew attention
to a government Food Strategy published in June 2022 and the ongoing work by
NYCC’s Public Health team to develop a North Yorkshire – whole system – plan.
The plan would look at the issues of food security and sustainable production,
healthier eating and nutrition and creating healthier food environments. She
confirmed it was intended to involve a range of partners from public, business,
health, education and community sectors, and noted that in recognition that
work on those issues was an area that required additional resource, the new
plan was being developed by a newly established team - Healthier Lives,
Community and Economy unit, in Public Health.
She also drew attention to the Council’s continued investment in a
number of programmes and services that would contribute to the themes of the
plan, which included:
·
The
Healthy Child Programme
·
Healthy
Schools initiative including healthy school zones
·
Working
with planners and advertisers in relation to healthy food options
·
Healthy
Weight, Healthy Lives - which reports annual progress
·
The
Director of Public Health Annual Report
She noted there was also a range of practical support available for
people experiencing food or fuel insecurity through services such as:
·
Free
school meals – over 10,000 children currently
·
Household
Support Grants
·
North
Yorkshire Local Assistance Fund
·
The
Holiday Activity and Food programme for children who are eligible for free
school meals
·
Grant
support for food banks and other local voluntary sector food support
initiatives
·
The
Warm and Well service that offer support and help in relation to fuel and
energy costs
Finally, she
confirmed the whole system plan currently being developed would be a means to
bring a range of programmes and activities together under a strategic overview,
with prioritised action plans, which in turn would help clarify the roles and
contributions needed throughout the whole system in relation to both prevention
activities and response services.
The Chairman thanked Mr Harrison for his contribution to the meeting and confirmed the issues would be further discussed as part of agenda item 5.