London Metropolitan University

The Mayor of London and London Metropolitan University have joined forces to host an event and launch a report which look at methods used in New York and London to fight childhood obesity.

The event will draw on research in ‘ObesCities’ a new report by the London Metropolitan University and City University of New York, which details flab fighting initiatives used in both cities. Guests will also discuss ways the Mayor’s Health Inequalities Strategy can promote healthier lifestyles and make it easier for children and families in London to make better choices.

The seminar will open with a presentation from the authors of the report and an expert panel will offer their thoughts on what more London can do. Guest speakers will include Rosie Boycott, Chair of London Food, who will discuss the need for more sustainable food growth to promote healthy food choices and local food growing projects. Pamela Chesters, the Mayoral adviser on Health and Youth Opportunities will discuss ways the Mayor’s office can challenge food providers to offer a better range of appetising menus.

Camden, City of London, Kensington and Chelsea, Kingston-upon-Thames, Lewisham, Richmond-upon-Thames, Tower Hamlets, and Wandsworth have all been judged as performing excellently under the new annual ratings of the services and support provided to children.

The ratings look at the performance of England’s 152 local authorities and provide a wide-ranging assessment of all the children’s services a council is responsible for, either alone or in partnership with other agencies, and the differences they are making to children’s lives.

London Councils’ lead member for Children and Young People, Cllr Nick Stanton, said: “Despite some of the negative headlines children’s services have received over the last year these figures are testament to the great strides being made across the capital.

“Local authorities look after some of the capital’s most vulnerable children who need careful and often specialised help and support at a very delicate time of their lives.

“The figures released by Ofsted today show that London has some of the best performing children’s services anywhere in the country – and that is something we should be proud of.

“However, Londoners should be assured that councils will not be resting on their laurels and will continue to provide the best possible services to the capital’s children.”

The Bill will make councils responsible for providing free home care to older and disabled people considered to have ‘critical’ needs and also require significant help with four or more ‘activities of daily living’, such as dressing or getting out of bed.

The government estimates that around 450,000 people will be eligible for these services nationally. It will make £420m funding available in the first full year the Bill is introduced but also expects local authorities to generate another £250m in efficiency savings to provide the scheme.

Adult social services departments have already been making efficiency savings to ensure they can maintain a high standard of service despite the current economic climate. But they are now being told to use these savings to help fund the government’s new initiative.

London Councils fears this will further strain social services budgets in London, which have been hit by a series of below-inflation finance settlements and a huge loss of funding thanks to changes to the adult personal social services funding formula.

With social care services set to face even greater pressure due to the increasingly ageing population this new burden could push them closer to breaking point.

London Councils is also concerned that the new measure could cause tensions between councils and families when deciding the best care needed for a relative.

Families will likely resist a local authority’s suggestion that their relative’s needs would be better provided in a care home when they can receive care, although limited, at home for free.

London Councils’ Executive Member for Health and Adult Services Councillor Mike Freer said:

“It is perverse that the Department for Health is ordering local authorities to generate yet more efficiency savings to pay for central government initiatives. It’s their scheme – they should fund it.

”This is an enormously emotive issue and we have deep concerns that this will cause arguments between families and local authorities in deciding the most appropriate level of care needed by a relative. This could cause major problems at the most delicate of times.

“Planning and paying for the care of the most vulnerable members of society is one of the most pressing issues facing local authorities today. London’s older and disabled people deserve the very best care we can provide, but heaping new burdens on local authorities like this is lunacy.”

Free swimming viable?

Figures released Tuesday fail to show if the government’s free swimming scheme for older and younger people has achieved its objectives – says London Councils.

The Department for Media, Culture and Sport’s figures show that London’s local authorities provided nearly a million free swims for older people and children under 16 between April and September 2009.

However, they do not show whether the free swims were for new users or were used by people who used to pay to swim but are now taking advantage of the scheme.

Until that detail is known, it will be impossible to say whether the programme has been successful in encouraging greater numbers of older people and children to stay active – or whether it has simply placed an unfair cost burden on local authorities.

In December, London Councils will be conducting in-depth analysis of the programme in the capital which will help provide a better understanding of whether the scheme has been successful as well as its financial impact on local authorities.

Currently the government provides £140 million nationally to support local authorities to provide free swimming for older people and children under 16. However this funding is split around 300 local authorities participating in the scheme.

London Councils’ Chairman Councillor Merrick Cockell said:

“Councils are keen to do their bit to encourage their residents – particularly older people and children – to stay healthy and active. While it is a marvellous offer for older people and children to be able to swim in public pools for free, it places a financial burden on local councils at a time when resources are scarce.

“If this scheme is simply offering a free swim to those who would normally have paid then it has failed – and councils should not be forced into subsidising a national government policy.

“Our research in December should provide more meaningful statistics on who is taking up the offer and enable us to see how well the government’s scheme is working in reality.”

For the full details of the government’s free swimming programme, please visit: http://www.dcms.gov.uk/reference_library/media_releases/6403.aspx

Between April and September 2009 London local authorities provided 388,747 free swims for older people and 603,098 for children under 16.