Cabinet meeting: 3 July 2023

• Rt. Hon. Mark Drakeford MS (Chair)
• Lesley Griffiths MS
• Rebecca Evans MS
• Vaughan Gething MS
• Jane Hutt MS
• Julie James MS
• Jeremy Miles MS
• Eluned Morgan MS
• Mick Antoniw MS

• Hannah Blythyn MS
• Dawn Bowden MS
• Lynne Neagle MS
• Julie Morgan MS
• Lee Waters MS

Officials

• Des Clifford, Director Office of the First Minister
• Rebecca Dunn, Head of Cabinet Division
• Toby Mason, Head of Strategic Communications
• Rory Powell, Head of First Minister’s Office
• Jane Runeckles, Special Adviser
• Madeleine Brindley, Special Adviser
• Alex Bevan, Special Adviser 
• Daniel Butler, Special Adviser
• Ian Butler, Special Adviser
• Kate Edmunds, Special Adviser
• Sara Faye, Special Adviser
• Sam Hadley, Special Adviser
• David Hooson, Special Adviser
• Clare Jenkins, Special Adviser
• Owen John, Special Adviser
• Phillipa Marsden, Special Adviser
• Tom Woodward, Special Adviser
• Christopher W Morgan, Head of Cabinet Secretariat (minutes)
• Damian Roche, Cabinet Secretariat
• Catrin Sully, Cabinet Office
• Kathryn Hallett, First Minister’s Office
• Tracey Burke, Director General Climate Change & Rural Affairs
• Jo-Anne Daniels, Director General Education, Social Justice and Welsh Language
• Tim Moss, Chief Operating Officer
• Andrew Slade, Director General, Economy, Treasury and Constitution
• Albert Heaney, Chief Social Care Officer for Wales
• Neil Buffin, Deputy Director Legal Services
• Gawain Evans, Director Finance
• Ed Wilson, Deputy Director Public Health, Improvements & Inequalities (item 4)
• Nicola Evans, Head of Health Inequalities & Healthy Communities (item 4)

1.1 Cymeradwyodd y Cabinet gofnodion y 26 Mehefin / Cabinet approved the minutes of 26 June.

COVID-19 Inquiry

2.1 The First Minister informed Cabinet that he was chairing the meeting from London as he and the Minister for Economy would be giving evidence to the COVID-19 Inquiry the following day. The CMO had been giving evidence that afternoon and he was due to be followed by the Permanent Secretary. Dr Quentin Sandifer, of Public Health Wales and Reg Kilpatrick, Director General COVID-19 recovery and Local Government were also expected to give evidence that week.

Scrutiny of the First Minister Committee

2.2 The First Minister advised Cabinet that he would be travelling to North Wales on Thursday to attend the Senedd’s Scrutiny of the First Minister Committee, which was taking place in Wrexham on Friday.

3.1 Cabinet considered the Plenary grid and noted that the Minister for Social Justice and Chief Whip would respond to the short debate on the military footprint in Wales. Voting time would be around 6.20pm on Tuesday and approximately 6:25pm on Wednesday.

4.1 The Deputy Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing introduced the paper, which asked Cabinet to agree the proposed structure of the National Framework for Social prescribing and note the timescales for its development.

4.2 Social prescribing was an umbrella term that described a person-centred approach to linking people to community-based, non-clinical support and was a way of connecting them with their community to better manage their health and well-being. It aimed to empower individuals to recognise their own needs, strengths, and personal assets.

4.3 From a health perspective the case for non-medical support through social prescribing was clear, it could improve mental wellbeing, reduce anxiety and depression, while enhancing self-esteem and reducing loneliness and isolation. It could also play a vital role in maintaining healthy body weight, while helping people live better for longer.

4.4 Within Wales, as in other countries, there had been a lack of standardisation and consistency in the approach to social prescribing. This had resulted in potential confusion amongst both public and the workforce as to who should receive the benefits of social prescribing and who should be delivering services. There was impaired communication between sectors, professionals and with the public. 

4.5 Officials had engaged with almost 1,000 stakeholders to develop a Welsh model of social prescribing, for consultation. This exercise received over 190 responses and the outcome directly shaped the proposed national framework.

4.6 The National Framework for Social Prescribing responded to the issues raised as part of the consultation exercise. It would provide reassurances on the consistency and quality of delivery, while setting out a proposed structure and outlining how the model would operate in Wales. It helped to develop a common understanding of the language used to describe social prescribing and ensured consistency of delivery regardless of the setting.

4.7 Cabinet welcomed the paper and noted that time credits associated with social prescribing were making a significant difference to improving volunteer diversity as well as the recruitment and retention of volunteers. This was also helping to build resilient communities.

4.8 The Arts sector was proactively using a creative approach through social prescribing to support the mental health and wellbeing of individuals and communities. There were also opportunities within the environmental sector.

4.9 Cabinet approved the paper and noted the planned milestones and communication plans.

Cabinet Secretariat
July 2023