Agenda and minutes

Consideration was given to the minutes of the meeting of the Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care held on 22^nd March 2010.

Resolved:- That the minutes of the previous meeting held on 22^nd March 2010 be approved as a correct record.

Shona McFarlane, Director of Health and Wellbeing presented the submitted report which informed the Cabinet Member of the Learning Skills Council and the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills intention that from 2011/12, all the Learning Skills Council funding for informal adult learning, would be channelled through the Local Authority.

In April 2010 the Learning Skills Council will be abolished and adult learning will be managed by a new successor body called the Skills Funding Agency.  Local Authorities would be invited to take responsibility for the local agenda and to provide local leadership and the infrastructure to create a joined up innovative learning offer.  Consultation had clearly identified Local Authorities as the best place to co-ordinate informal learning activity.

The government want Local Authorities to build on the best of what exists now and have the autonomy and tools to drive the creation of a new culture of informal learning.  Local Authorities would work with others to provide five core elements to underpin a strong local offer of informal learning:

• Innovation
• Universal access
• Targeted support
• Collaboration
• Promotion

In Rotherham there were already strong existing partnerships which could be built on; the Adult Learning and Skills Strategy Group and the Rotherham Adult Learning Partnership already brought together representatives from statutory, public, private and voluntary and community sector organisations.  RMBC’s Community Learning team already delivered a substantial amount of Adult Safeguarded Learning through sub-contracted provision.  The existing arrangements already provided a joined up local strategic approach but with the Local Authority taking on the role of Lead Accountable Body it would provide even more of an opportunity to promote key agendas, such as community wellbeing; using learning to keep older people in local democracy; supporting people to gain skills to move into work; and providing economic and social wellbeing in communities and families.

The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (DBIS) would work with Local Authorities, Colleges of Further Education and a range of other stakeholders and partners over the next year to implement these proposals.  Over the next few months they would initiate discussions with Local Authority nominees about funding allocations, partnership and good working practice, quality and inspection issues, data collection and developing a new National Indicator, and opportunities for teachers and facilitators.

Resolved:- That the content of the report be noted.

Consideration was given to a report presented by Steve Lightfoot which outlined the 2009/10 Quarter 3 Key Performance Indicator results for the Adult Social Care elements of the Directorate.

At the end of Quarter 3, 75% of our Key Performance Indicators remained on target.  There was no change compared with the last quarter.

The following performance measures did not achieve their quarter 3 targets:

NAS 1 (PAFD40) Percentage of clients receiving a review

Performance levels had improved since September and the indicator was currently rated as ‘on target’.  A recovery plan had been put in place integrating actions agreed at DMT/SMT in November and outstanding actions from previous clinics.  As at Quarter 2 we had reviewed 2420 clients, and as a result of the recovery plan this had increased to 3748 by Quarter 3, and to 6314 by 24^th March 2010.  This represented 79.02% of our service user population which was 2.02% above year end target and was our best ever performance score for review, and placed us above the national average.  At current rates of improvement it was anticipated that we would be in the upper quartile by year end.

A meeting had taken place with RDaSH Directors and a plan to deliver improvements in Quarter 4 had been agreed.  A member of the Performance team had been working closely with their managers and information department to implement the actions and, as at 24^th March, RDaSH were performing at 89.86%.

NI 136 (Vital Signs 3) People supported to live independently through social services (LAA)

This indicator included a combination of people that were receiving care managed services following a community care assessment and those people that were receiving services from the voluntary sector. 

At the end of Quarter 3 we were helping 5,737 service users to live at home, which was an improvement of 165 since the 2^nd quarter. This score included this year’s voluntary sector figures plus people currently in receipt of an assessed care package.  The voluntary sector had helped an additional 114 clients to live in the community this year.  We had however lost 209 clients this year due to the closure of Meals on Wheels, Laundry and Bathing services and had also seen a reduction in Mental Health services due to data quality work undertaken by RDaSH.  The combined effect on performance had seen a decrease during Quarter 4 and, as at 24^th March, we were helping 5,626 service users. 

To achieve this year’s target we would need to help approximately 1,800 extra service users by the end of the year.  The way this indicator was measured excluded a lot of our prevention activity.  These were national issues which were being debated pending development of the new National Indicator Set which would be implemented during 2011/12.

NI 132 Timeliness of social care assessments

Performance had improved since the 2^nd quarter of the year.  Based upon the actions we had put in place following a corporate performance clinic held on  ...  view the full minutes text for item 106.

Mark Scarrott, Finance Manager (Adult Services) presented the submitted report which provided a financial forecast for the Adult Services Department within the Neighbourhoods and Adult Services Directorate to the end of March 2010 based on actual income and expenditure to the end of February 2010.

The approved net revenue budget for Adult Services for 2009/10 was £72.7m which included additional funding for demographic and existing budget pressures together with a number of new investments and efficiency savings identified through the 2009/10 budget setting process.

The previous budget monitoring reports had identified underlying pressures of £2.1m, but after taking account of a number of identified savings and delivery of a number of management actions there was now a forecasted balanced outturn by the end of year.

The latest year end forecast showed the main budget pressures in the following areas:-

• Home Care as a result of delays in shifting the balance of provision to the independent sector (+£599k).
• Increase in residential and nursing care short stays over and above approved budget for clients with a physical and sensory disability (+£66k).
• Independent sector home care provision for Physical and Sensory Disability clients had increased by an additional 1,112 hours since April 2009, a further 74 clients were now receiving a service. This was resulting in an overspend of £381k against the approved budget.
•  A significant increase above approved budget in clients receiving a Direct Payment within Physical and Sensory Disabilities and Older Peoples Services (+£484k), partially offset by Social Care Reform Grant Allocation of (-£100k).
• Additional one-off expenditure was being incurred in respect of the costs of boarding up, removal of utilities and security costs at the former residential care homes prior to them transferring to the Council’s property bank (+£200k).
• Delays in the implementation of budget savings agreed as part of the budget setting process for 2009/10 in respect of meals on wheels (+£277k), laundry (+£145k) and the bathing service (+£40k).
• Increase in costs of Occupational Therapist contracts (+£120k)
• Continued pressure on the cost of day care  transport provision for Learning Disability Day care clients reduced by planned delays in recruitment to vacant posts (+£46k).

However, the above pressures had been reduced by:-

• Additional income from continuing health care funding from NHS Rotherham (-£431k).

·        Overall underspend within Learning Disabilities Supported Living schemes mainly due to planned delays in the implementation of new schemes  (-£188k).

·        Savings within independent residential care due to an increase in income from property charges (-£672k) and slippage in intermediate care spot beds (-£40k).

·        Savings on the reconfiguration of Extra Care housing (-£340k).

·        Planned delay in developing rehabilitation and supported living facilities for clients with a physical and sensory disability (-£157k) plus agreed delay in developing respite care provision (-£157k).

·        Underspend within In house Transport Unit due to a reduction in vehicle leasing costs and additional income (-£150k).

·        Slippage in recruitment due to a number of new posts (-£76k) where additional funding was agreed within the 2009/10 budget process.

The majority (93%) of identified management actions  ...  view the full minutes text for item 107.

Mark Scarrott, Finance Manager (Adult Services) presented the submitted report which informed members of the anticipated outturn against the approved Adult Services capital programme for the 2009/10 financial year.

The actual expenditure to mid March 2010 was £464k against a revised programme of £1.2m for 2009/10.  There was a forecast underspend of around £200k due to slippage in a number of projects, but any balance of funding could be carried over into 2010/11 until the capital project was completed.  Capital schemes were funded from a variety of different funding sources including unsupported borrowing, allocations from the capital receipts, supported capital expenditure and specific capital grant funding.

Resolved:- That the Adult Services forecast capital outturn for 2009/10 be received and noted.