Agenda item

To receive and consider the report of the Director of Public Health on the Draft Age Friendly Leeds Strategy & Action Plan 2022-2025.

The report of the Director of Public Health presented to the Inner North East Community Committee the refresh of the draft Age Friendly Strategy and Action Plan 2022-2025 to gain feedback. The report also requested support and promotion of the work of Age Friendly within the city.

The Community Committee were provided with the following points:

·  Around 1 in 3 people are aged 50 and over. The number of Leeds residents aged 80 and over will increase by about 50% in the next 20 years.

·  Age Friendly Leeds is one of the eight priorities in the Best Council Plan 2020-2025. The vision for Leeds is that it is a place where people age well, older people are valued, respected, appreciated and seen as assets.

·  The draft Age Friendly Leeds Strategy 2022-25 has been reviewed and refreshed which has been informed by The State of Ageing in Leeds report. The process has been overseen by the Age Friendly Board chaired by Cllr Jenkins. The role of the Board is to provide strategic leadership and set the strategic direction for the Age Friendly Leeds work programme and ensure that the objectives are being met.

·  Leeds is a member of the World Health Organisation Age Friendly Cities programme and has used and adapted the framework to identify and address barriers to the well-being and participation of older people.

·  The strategy sets out six key priority areas: housing; public and civic spaces; travel and road safety; active, included and respected; healthy and independent ageing and employment and learning. Each of the priorities is headed by a domain lead. Domain leads have been identified and are working to implement the actions set out in the plan. The domain leads will feedback on a quarterly basis.

·  The Leeds Older Peoples Forum (LOPF) gives practical ways for the local community to become involved to strengthen the age friendly approach and Councillors were invited to support and encourage people and businesses to get involved in:

o  The Age Friendly Ambassador Programme

o  Becoming a Dementia Friend

o  Age and Dementia Friendly Businesses

o  The Come in and Rest Scheme

o  Leeds Older People’s Age Friendly Steering Group

·  Public Health are working with partners to support older people in Leeds to be as resilient as possible this winter. It was recognised that the cost-of-living crisis together with the impact that the cold weather can have on older people will require an approach to ensure proactive and preventative support is provided to those most at risk this winter. It was noted there are a range of services to support older people during cold weather including:

o  Information and Advice Service run through Age UK Leeds who can offer information and advice on a range of issues such as:

§  Money Matters

§  State Benefits

§  Housing Rights

§  Consumer issues

o  Home Plus Leeds – whose aim is to enable and maintain independent living through improving health at home.

o  Lunch Clubs – Public Health fund the annual Lunch Club Grants offering a financial contribution to support voluntary groups to provide hot nutritious meals and social activities for older people in a communal environment for 40 weeks per year.

o  Sign up to receive Cold Weather Alerts

o  ‘Stay Well this Winter’ Grants

o  Become a winter friend

Cllr Jenkins attended the meeting and updated the Community Committee on the following issues:

·  Cost of living and fuel crisis including priority register for energy companies and a pilot scheme looking at the use of slow cookers.

·  Access buses – and although there have been some difficulties with this service, it should be up and running again soon.

·  Bus Fare Campaign – to remove the charges for concessionary bus pass users before 9.30am on weekdays. It was noted that from Monday tickets would be charged at £2 per journey and £4 per day.

·  Closure of ticket offices at railway stations.

The Community Committee discussions included:

·  Resting places and toilet facilities for use by the elder in the community and the city centre.

·  The need to address issues in relation to transport for the elderly.

·  Access to clubs which can provide activities, exercise, and interaction with other like-minded people.

·  Information for older people on the best diets for them.

·  Free places for swimming and gentle exercise classes

·  Give credit to businesses who make available resting places and use of facilities.

·  More benches in local areas.

The Community Committee were of the view that social prescribing, although useful was inconsistent across the city.

Members requested more details on:

·  Ambassador Programme

·  Training in relation to becoming a Dementia Friendly Ambassador

·  Come in and rest schemes

·  To know if wards are represented on older people and age friendly steering groups

·  To receive an Age Friendly Pack

Cllr Dowson as Chair challenged the Members to try to add 5 businesses per ward for the Come in and Rest initiative.

It was noted that the Community Committee were holding a cost of living workshop on Tuesday 4th October to discuss the current crisis and see how the voluntary sector could work collaboratively to offer support to those most in need.

RESOLVED - To:

·  Note the content of the report and the refresh of the Age Friendly Strategy

·  Consider what work is currently underway to support age friendly, winter planning and the cost-of-living crisis in the local area and how to build on these further.

·  Consider the needs of the local ageing population and how these needs can be addressed through local age friendly work

·  Consider how the work of the Age Friendly Strategy and the community approaches lead by LOPF can be embedded within work of the community committee.