Agenda item

The Board will receive a presentation on the operation of the safe and well checks provided by the Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Authority in order to raise awareness of the service and its benefits to local residents.

The Chairman reported that she was delighted that there had been an opportunity to include this item on the agenda.  She highlighted her experience of the inspirational work undertaken by the team.  Seth Why referred to a previous meeting of the Board and a comment made on the need to reduce the level of admissions to hospital he highlighted the services provided by the team to vulnerable residents in the community including signposting and providing education.

The Board received a presentation from Sarah Moore, Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service on the work of the Safe and Well team and the services and support provided by the team. She outlined the reasons that people suffer from fires in their homes and that on average each fire death cost £1.65m which was why there was a Safe and Well team.  In the Winter there can be additional reasons for fires including using old heaters, overloaded sockets and chimney fires. The Board was advised of the two different sides of fire safety, prevention and protection.  Sarah explained that the Safe and Well Team come under fire prevention so when they visit people in their homes. They are encouraging them to change their habits by taking on goodwill advice. The Board was advised of the role of the Safety Advisers who were based locally.  Sarah explained that visits were normally arranged by telephone and visits involved the adviser identifying potential risks in their home.  She also indicated that there was an ability during the visit to see if there were any other issues such as use of medication, alcohol or mobility problems and if so to signpost residents to other agencies for support. The Board was also advised of other support provided by the team including the loan of heaters, provision of fire-retardant bedding, installation of deaf alert systems, fitting carbon monoxide detectors and offering talks in the Community.  Sarah highlighted the “Do you know a Charlie Initiative” which was promoted to health professionals and provided an opportunity for vulnerable residents to be referred to the Safe and Well team for support.  The Board was informed that there had been 4,000 visits by the team in the BCP area for 2019/20.

Jan Thurgood, Corporate Director BCP Council endorsed the joint work with the Adult Social Care contact centre and referred to the multi-disciplinary hoarding panel which the fire service was engaged with and welcomed the partnership working.  The Corporate Director asked if Sarah Moore could provide a brief overview of the service being provided in the current climate due to covid.

Sarah explained that the Team were still providing a service in the current climate with most contact with residents via the telephone.  She reported that the team were visiting those in highest risk with appropriate PPE, where equipment needed to be fitted.

The Board highlighted the importance of the work that the team do and the complexities of the needs of some residents they were working with.  The Chairman asked how the impact of the team’s visits could be measured overtime. Seth Why reported that the number of fires and fire deaths were reducing.  Sarah explained that it was more difficult to measure the impact on health-related issues.  The Board was advised that discussions were underway at a national level on how this area could be evaluated.  Seth Why suggested that this could be a possible area of work for partners.

Councillor Dedman referred to the 7,000 fires caused by electrical faults and asked if there was any difference between rental and home-owned properties.  Sarah reported that this would require research work but personally I am not aware of there being such differences.

Councillor Moore thanked Sarah for the presentation and reported that she was part of a neighbourhood watch and would welcome Sarah attending a future AGM meeting.

The Chairman asked if the team had links into the primary care networks and GP surgeries and asked if a flag could be provided on the GP system if a resident had been referred to or was in contact with the Safe and Well Team.  Sarah reported that just before covid the team was making inroads into GP surgeries and integration was working well.

Kate Ryan, Corporate Director BCP Council thanked the team for the joint efforts working across the Council’s housing stock and welcomed this partnership approach continuing.

The Chairman thanked Seth Why and Sarah Moore for the presentation.

RESOLVED that the presentation be received and noted. 

Attached are the slides from the above presentation.