Agenda item

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 2008/09 financial year.

The actual expenditure to the mid February 2009 was £8.2m against an approved programme of £9.1m and since the last report there had been some further slippage.  The latest forecast expenditure to the end of March was now £9m.  The approved 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.

The following information provided a brief summary of the latest position on the main projects within each client group.

Older People

The two new residential care homes were now fully operational.

The Assistive Technology Grant (which included funding from NHS Rotherham) was being managed jointly and was being used to purchase Telehealth and Telecare equipment to enable people to live in their own homes.  The procurement of equipment had now commenced which included lifeline connect alarms, low temperature sensors and fall detectors within peoples homes.  It was anticipated that expenditure would continue to be incurred in 2009/10 and any balance of funding would be carried forward to meet these costs.

A small element of the Department of Health specific grant (£20k) issued in 2007/08 to improve the environment within residential care provision was carried forward into 2008/09.  The balance of grant was being allocated across the independent residential care sector in accordance with the grant conditions and would be fully spent by the end of March 2009.

Learning Disabilities

The small balances of funding carried forward from 2007/08 were to be used for the equipment for Parkhill Lodge and within supported living schemes.

The refurbishment at Addison Day Centre, funded from the Council’s Strategic Maintenance Investment fund was now complete. 

There had been delays in the start of the refurbishment of the REACH Day Centre and the scheme was now due to commence in April 2009 which meant that the funding would be carried forward into 2009/10.

Mental Health

A small balance remained on the Cedar House capital budget and would be used for the purchase of additional equipment.  A large proportion of the Supported Capital Expenditure (SCE) allocation had been carried forward from previous years due to difficulties in finding suitable accommodation for the development of supported living schemes.  Suitable properties continued to be identified and spending plans were being developed jointly with RDASH.  It was now expected that this service would be commissioned in 2009/10 and would support the In-Patient re-Provision Exercise which was now at the formal planning stage.  The possibility of funding equipment purchased for direct payments was also being considered to reduce the current pressures on the mental health revenue budgets.  Further options were also being considered to provide more intensive supported living schemes with a range of providers and to fund a range of new assistive technologies for mental health clients, which would support their independence with access to 24 hour support.

Management Information

Part of the capital grant for Improving Management Information was carried forward into 2008/09.  The funding had been earmarked to further develop Electronic Social Care Records within Health and Social Care working with the Council’s strategic partner RBT and Children and Young People’s Services.  At the end of August 2008 the Department of Health announced a new capital grant for Adult Social Care IT infrastructure over the next three years (£276k).  Delays had been experienced in developing spending plans with RBT to integrate social care information across both health and social care and it was therefore forecast that the new grant would be carried forward into 2009/10.

Resolved:- That the Adult Services forecast capital outturn for 2008/09 be noted and received.