Issue - meetings

Report of the Strategic Director of Adult Care, Housing and Public Health

Cabinet Member:     Councillor Roche

Commissioner:         Ney (in advisory role)

Recommendations:

1.  That approval be given to the draft Learning Disability Strategy and approve future stakeholder engagement.

2.  That approval be given to the development of a Rotherham Supported Living and Better Days Framework as detailed in the Learning Disability Strategy (Appendix C).

3.  That approval be given to the transformation of the Learning Disability Services over the next two years which will see the services move from existing building based locations to alternative care and support that will be situated as close to the person as possible in their local community, using and developing existing resources and community buildings i.e. leisure centres and community provision.  Oaks Day Centre, Addison Day Centre, Treefields, Quarryhill and Parkhill will be decommissioned. 

4.  That the Council continue to provide a service to people with high complex needs. The Elliott Centre and Maple Avenue buildings will be reviewed and may be moved to more suitable alternative premises should they become available.

5.  That approval be given to the delivery plan which sets out how the Council will make sure all people with a learning disability have access to community based services that promote independence, wellbeing and social inclusion. This will ensure that: 

•      Each person with a learning disability has a review based on a person centred approach, which will inform the support and services the Council needs to provide to meet their individual needs by 2020. A dedicated team of social workers with the support of the existing staff will undertake the reviews. This will also include advocacy support and engagement with carers.

•      Each person will have the opportunity to make sure every day in their life is meaningful, of value and leads to them having a ‘Good Day’. Doing things which have a purpose; being in ordinary places doing things most other people in the community would be doing; doing things that are for the individual; making sure they receive the right amount of support; and are in touch with local people, developing friendships.

•      More people have the opportunity to participate in paid employment.

•      A strength based approach will be taken  to develop a range of opportunities, including shared lives, use of personal budgets, develop skills for independent living  provide support when the carer needs it and making sure more people have their own front door.

Consideration was given to a report which set out the details for the next steps in the transformation of services and support for people with a learning disability in line with the Learning Disability Strategy, vision and the learning from the consultation with people and families.

The needs of people with a learning disability were continuing to change and were becoming more diverse.  People and families had higher expectations of what it meant to have an independent life in their community and wanted more control over their lives.

The challenges facing the Council were being recognised and the review of the Learning Disability Services which began in 2015 had resulted in a number of reports and consultation with the people who used the services.

The review was integral to the Council’s overall vision for transforming Social Care and built on the principles of the Care Act 2014 with the need to move away from traditional building-based support.  This would result in Oaks Day Centre, Addison Day Centre, Treefields and Quarryhill being decommissioned with further consultation on the future of Parkhill Lodge.

The Council fully understood that changes could create anxiety and would be respectful of this and would consider and take into account the learning from the consultations that have taken place to develop a robust communication and engagement strategy.  This would be to ensure people with learning disabilities, their families and carers, received reliable and timely information and were fully engaged and included throughout the development of plans.

Moving forward all service users would undergo a person-centred approach thorough individual assessment of need before alternative provision was put in place.

Cabinet Members acknowledged the sensitivity around this Service, but reflected on the lessons learnt from other local authorities and welcomed the opportunities that may arise for Service users from within their own communities.  However, Members, families and Service users were reassured that needs would be carefully looked at by a dedicated team and that no changes would take place until a full assessment had been undertaken.

This report had been considered by the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board as part of the pre-scrutiny process who were in support of the recommendations, subject to monitoring reports being submitted to Overview and Scrutiny Management Board and/or Health Select Commission 6 months after implementation of the Strategy and underlying work streams, the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health consider how non-executive Members could become involved in the evaluations of client experience in the delivery of the Learning Disability Strategy, visits to other authorities that have implemented a similar approach be arranged for Members and carers to observe the benefits outlined within the report and that prior to any decision on the future of Parkhill Lodge being made, a specific and formal consultation exercise is carried out on the proposed closure.

Resolved:-  (1)  That the draft Learning Disability Strategy and future stakeholder engagement be approved.

(2)  That the development of a Rotherham Supported Living and Better Days Framework as detailed  ...  view the full minutes text for item 148

Consideration was given to a report which set out the next steps in the transformation of services and support for people with a learning disability in line with the learning disability strategy, vision and the learning from the consultation with people and families.

It was reported that the needs of people with a learning disability were continuing to change and becoming more diverse. People and families have higher expectations of what it meant to have an independent life in their community, and wanted more control over their lives. It was further reported that there were a number of key steps that the Council needed to take to achieve the vision and the three year improvement journey for people with a learning disability.

Reflecting on the comments of the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health, Members observed that austerity was forcing the issue under consideration, rather than causing the issue itself. The promotion of independence was cited as a laudable aim for people with learning disabilities and it was suggested that it would be beneficial to visit other authorities who had adopted a similar approach to learn lessons from their implementation. This would help to provide some reassurance on a sensitive issue and assist in minimising disruption. In response, the Cabinet Member confirmed that opportunities to visit Wigan MBC and other places had been offered to Members and the managers of the Addison and Oaks Day Centres. He confirmed that there was no reason that further visits could not be organised.

Members queried how regularly assessments had been undertaken and it was confirmed by the Strategic Director that the service had not been strong on this historically. As part of the new strategy, a new team would be established that understood learning disabilities and the requirements of assessment. It was also confirmed that the transition from childhood to adulthood needed to be reviewed to improve the offer and it was recognised that a ‘one size fits all’ approach would not be appropriate.

It was confirmed that there had been five referrals to the Addison and Oaks Day Centres in the past twelve months. Responding to a supplementary question, it was explained that people did not want to go to these facilities. The Strategic Director confirmed that this had been down to individual choice and not a result of direction ahead the proposals to change the service.

Reference was made to advocacy services and Members queried the capacity of the advocacy services and whether they could manage the change. In response, the Cabinet Member confirmed that this was very important and the Council would ensure it was provided through organisations such as Speak Up. Following on, the Strategic Director advised that advocacy services were not being used well and contracts were being looked at with an eye to the future.

Resolved:-

1. That Cabinet be advised that the recommendations be supported.

2. That monitoring reports to be submitted to Overview and Scrutiny Management Board and/or Health Select Commission six months after implementation  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6