Agenda item

Purpose of Report

To provide the Executive with information relating to the Lincoln Intervention Team, their achievements and work to date and to seek approval for year two funding.

Decision

That the Executive:

(1)          Notes the performance of the team in the first six to nine months of operation.

(2)          Approves the allocation of £65,000 as match funding to enable the project to continue through to December 2020.

Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

None.

Reason for Decision

The Lincoln Intervention Team was launched in October 2018 and currently had funding until December 2019, funded by a range of partners including the Police and Crime Commissioner, Lincoln BIG and the City Council. The team was working to reduce on-street Anti-Social Behaviour by holistically working with individuals to deal with the root cause of their behaviour and comprised of an Anti-Social Behaviour Outreach Officer, Mental Health Nurse Outreach Officer, Addaction Outreach Officer and a Team Co-ordinator.

Achievements to date were noted as follows:

·         the team had worked with 103 different individuals since the start of the project in October 2018 and had logged in excess of 614 actions on the case management system;

·         29 individuals had received in depth support for substance misuse and five had entered treatment where previously they were not engaging with services;

·         39 individuals had received in depth support for mental health related issues and 14 had engaged in a support plan or entered treatment;

·         the team had issued 40 written warnings about behaviour or substance misuse, ten legal notices, completed four prosecutions and obtained one Criminal Behaviour Order;

·         the team was working on a city centre injunction against persons unknown to provide additional powers to both the City Council and the Police when dealing with substance misuse in the city;

·         the team had assisted Legal Services Officers with the service of notices to remove encampments from City Council land;

·         the team was assisting Lincolnshire Police to support vulnerable victims of county lines hate crime across the city.

The current staffing structure was set out in paragraph five of the report. Funding for the team for year two was proposed as follows:

·         £65,000 from the City of Lincoln Council;

·         £10,000 from Lincoln BIG;

·         £50,000 from the Police and Crime Commissioner.

Paragraph seven of the report set out how this funding would be allocated to the different roles associated with the team.

Discussion ensued on the significant physical and mental health problems associated with those people who found themselves in need of the support of the Intervention Team. With this in mind, clarity was requested over any contribution from the Clincical Commissioning Group for West Lincolnshire, or any other health organisations. It was reported that a request for the same contribution as the previous year, which totalled £5,000, had been made. If that funding came through it would be allocated towards backfill arrangements, although this had yet to be confirmed.

Nottingham was cited as an example where the services of street nurses, street general practictioners and street dentists had been allocated as part of a similar Intervention Team arrangement to help address immediate primary health care needs and keep people engaged with health services, counteracting potential longer term health problems. It was noted that a person classified as homeless in Lincoln could only currently register with a general practitioner for 28 days, which provided a limit on and inconsistency to their access to care. Members agreed, therefore, that the health community in Lincolnshire should provide a financial contribution to this important project.

A suggestion was made that this matter be highlighted through the Health Scrutiny Committee for Lincolnshire which, as a body, could be asked to make a specific request of commissioning bodies to provide a funding contribution towards the Intervention Team.

The Strategic Director of Communities and Environment provided an assurance to the Executive that conversations with the health community in respect of a funding contribution would continue. He made the point that in many cases it was necessary to demonstrate the impact funding could make to an issue before attracting further financial contributions. The success of the Intervention Team was becoming apparent and it was in a position where its positive impact could be demonstrated. The Strategic Director agreed to make contact with the Health Scrutiny Committee for Lincolnshire, as suggested.

Councillor Metcalfe, on behalf of the Executive, placed on record his thanks and appreciation to the excellent work of the Intervention Team to date.