The Board reconvened at 15:30

 

Councillor Dr Mahony arrived at this time

 

Sarah Gooding (Policy and Intelligence Advisor) and Rob Nelder (Consultant, Public Health) introduced the ‘Plymouth Report 2023’ to the Board, and highlighted the following points:

 

a.     The Plymouth Report provided an overview of the key needs and issues facing the city (Plymouth), using the latest census data available from 2021. The report was divided into 6 sections (Living, Healthy, Growing, Infrastructure, International, and Challenges & Concerns), and provided a crucial evidence base for the Plymouth Plan;

 

b.     The ‘Living’ section of the report detailed the geography and population of the city, exploring key issues such as community cohesion, crime, deprivation and education:

 

i.         Plymouth had a population of 264,700 people, with figures projected to  increase to 273,300 by 2043;

 

ii.       There was predicted to be a 31% increase in the over 65 demographic over the next 20 years (15,500 people);

 

iii.      Plymouth’s ‘working age population’ were currently above average however, this was projected to decrease over the next 10 years, leading to significant changes for the population profile;

 

iv.      77% of residents who responded to the City Survey 2022 thought Plymouth was a ‘great place to live’, and 65% had pride in their local area;

 

v.       There were currently around 9,900 children living in poverty in the city;

 

vi.      The Plymouth Report represented the culmination of an expansive piece of work conducted by numerous teams across the Council. It contained 100s of facts and figures which would help evaluation and forward planning for the city.

 

c.     The ‘Healthy’ section of the report detailed life expectancy, mortality, chronic disease, mental health, child health, lifestyle behaviours, vulnerable groups and healthcare:

 

i.        Life expectancy in Plymouth had improved for both men and women in recent years, but remained below national average. Healthy life expectancy for men in Plymouth was close to national average however, women’s healthy life expectancy was significantly below;

 

ii.       Approximately 30,500 people in Plymouth between the ages of 18-60 suffered from common mental health problems including depression, anxiety and OCD;

 

iii.      Alcohol and drug dependencies, both illegal and prescribed, were significant issues for Plymouth. These dependencies were linked to homelessness, offending, and had negative impacts on families and children;

 

iv.      Census data for 2021 showed an increase in the proportion of Plymouth residents reporting ‘good’ and ‘very good’ health, compared with results of the 2011 census.

 

d.     The ‘Growing’ section of the report detailed employment and jobs, wages, productivity, innovation, labour demand and skills and education:

 

                      i.        Plymouth had a marginally higher employment rate than the national average;

 

                    ii.        Health and social work activity sectors remained the largest sectors of employment however, the Manufacturing sector had seen year on year growth since 2018;

 

                   iii.         Wages in Plymouth had increased faster than the national average in the 12 months prior to November 2022 however, these were still not comparable to the national average, at 92.3%;

 

                   iv.         The gender pay gap in Plymouth had been ‘all but eliminated’;

 

                    v.        Plymouth had a lower proportion of the resident adult population that were economically active, than regional and national rates;

 

                   vi.         Plymouth was continuing to transform and rebalance its economy. The two industrial sectors that contributed the most to Plymouth’s growth figures were Manufacturing and Marine and Defence;

 

                  vii.         Plymouth was in the top 4 fishing ports in England for the volume of catch landed;

 

                viii.        Plymouth had the largest naval base in Western Europe, with Devonport spanning 650 acres. This provided world class infrastructure and a highly skilled workforce, accounting for 14.1% of Plymouth’s economic value, and 10% of the city’s employment;

 

                   ix.        March 2021, it had been announced that Plymouth would become one of the 8 national Free Ports. This was expected to generate 3,500 high quality jobs in and around the city.

 

e.     The ‘Infrastructure’ section of the report detailed housing demand and provision, local and strategic transport connectivity, digital connectivity, and climate change:

 

                      i.        ¼ of adults in Plymouth were estimated not to have access to a car or a van;

 

                    ii.        Plymouth had slightly lower home ownership levels than national trends, and higher private and social renting rates;

 

                   iii.         Current average rental prices in the city were between £625-1,000 per month depending on property size, and the average house price was £219,000 (an increase of 41% since 2010);

 

                   iv.         16,800 homes were classified as ‘in fuel poverty’ in the city.

 

f.       The ‘International’ section included exports, culture, and the visitor economy:

 

                      i.        University of Plymouth was the 15^th largest university in UK, with over 18,500 students;

 

                    ii.        Overall just under 22,500 student studied at Plymouths 3 universities;

 

                   iii.         Over 4 million people visited Plymouth in 2021, with visitor spend totalling £244 million;

 

                   iv.         Plymouth’s visitor sector supported around 8,000 jobs in the city, and accounted for 7% of total employment;

 

                    v.        Plymouth was the UK’s first social enterprise city and had approximately 200 social enterprises, employing over 9,000 people.

 

g.     The report identified numerous challenges and opportunities for Plymouth, many of which were similar to that of other UK cities. These were affected by significant change and turbulence taking place both nationally, and internationally;

 

h.     It was important for individuals and organisations in Plymouth to address these challenges collectively to maximise the City’s potential for growth and prosperity, and take advantage of opportunities as they arose;

 

i.       Some key concerns raised in the report warranted attention from city leaders and policy makes to assess if enough was being done to address the challenges, and what more could be achieved/ undertaken;

 

j.       Population change: Plymouth had seen increases to the 0-4 and 65+ population groups, but a decrease in its working age population of 15-64. A growing and changing population raised many challenges for future housing, education, employment, transport needs and increased demand for health services and children’s and adult’s social care;

 

k.     Cost of living: Plymouth’s deprivation and poverty levels were are already higher than the national average in some parts of the city, are were likely to further rise due to national and international challenges. Fuel and food poverty in the city meant that heath and living conditions were likely to deteriorate further, and increase inequalities. This would have knock on negative impacts on health and wellbeing, and could impact life expectancy and heathy life expectancy;

 

l.       Climate emergency: Changes to the way Plymouth’s residents lived and worked were necessary to achieve the Net-0 commitment by 2030. Journeys by cars, vans, and heavy goods vehicles needed to reduce by 25%, and this would require reliable and affordable public transport. Home emissions would also need to reduce, increasing energy efficiency, as over 5,000 private rented homes were estimated not to be of a decent standard;

 

m.   The Plymouth Report was published online and would shortly be going to Cabinet, and presented at internal management meetings to ensure broad awareness of the findings, key messages and challenges. In September/ October, the report would be sent to all partnership chairs and key partners across the city, with an invite to the Plymouth Plan Annual Convention. The Plymouth Plan Review 2024 would start city wide discussion on how the Plymouth plan should be updated in 2024 to reflect changes over the past few years, an adequately address current and future challenges.

 

In response to questions from the Board, it was reported that:

 

n.     The Local Housing Allowance was not keeping up with the average rents in Plymouth, making it difficult for people to find good places to live. This had a knock-on effect for many other parts of their lives, including mental health;

 

o.     While Plymouth faced challenges, there had been notable improvements identified in the report, particularly for life and health expectancy. It was important to evaluate and learn lessons from these successes, determining what measures had the greatest impact, and apply them to other areas;

 

p.     The report did not attempt to provide answers or solutions, but provided data and evaluations to provoke discussions and target future research / action. This would allow analysis of the challenges faced presently, and evaluation of the implications for future years;

 

q.     It was important that decisions made today and in future utilised the data within this report to address present challenges and opportunities, and that they considered and prepared for the challenges likely to occur in the future; 

 

r.      While some evidence in the report appeared challenging or problematic, there were also opportunities associated with these identified changes. It was noted that while a growing population of the 65+ demographic would likely produce pressures and increased demand for social care, particularly with healthy life expectancy sitting at 64, this also created a large potential volunteering work force, which could have significant beneficial impacts for individuals and communities; 

 

s.      Plymouth had revived funding to set up a research collaboration between the Council, and Plymouth University, assessing what measures had effectively contributed to the success/ improvements identified in the report, and which had been less efficient. This would help streamline future progress; 

 

t.      There was regional work being undertaken to assess why women’s healthy life expectancy was so low. Plymouth was being used as a case study for a  ‘women’s health strategy’ , and collective resources were being pooled to assess the problem, and any solutions.

 

The Board thanked the team for the comprehensive report and agreed:

 

1.     To formally adopt the Plymouth Report 2023, noting its content and key messages;

 

2.     To agree to promote the Plymouth Report within Board members’ own teams/ organisations;

 

3.     To recommend that all councillors receive a copy of the report.