Agenda item

Section 117 Joint Policy

(To receive a report from Heston Hassett, S117 Specialist Project Manager, which invites the Committee to consider the creation of the Section 117 Joint Policy for Lincolnshire County Council, Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Groups and the Lincolnshire Partnership Foundation Trust, which is due to be considered by the Executive Councillor for Adult Care, Health and Children's Services between 22 July and 2 August 2019)  

Minutes:

The Committee gave consideration to a report from the Executive Director of Adult Care and Community Wellbeing, which advised on the creation of the Section 117 Joint Policy for Lincolnshire County Council, Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCG's) and Lincolnshire Partnership Foundation Trust (LPFT), which was due to be considered by the Executive Councillor Adult Care, Health and Children's Services between 22 July and 2 August 2019.

 

The Vice-Chairman welcomed to the meeting Heston Hassett, Section 117 Specialist Project Manager.

 

The Committee was advised that Section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983 (as amended by the MHA 2007) provided a responsibility on Local Authorities and CCG's to provide/commission After-Care Services.  The Committee was advised further that this new multi-agency policy would replace existing arrangements in the three organisations.  It was noted that the policy had been ratified for use by LPFT's Executive Board and the CCG's Executive Officers.

 

Attached at Appendix 1 to the report was a copy of the Executive Councillor report and associated Appendices.

 

It was highlighted that as Section 117 of the Mental Health Act (MHA) 1983 applied to both adults and children, the policy was being considered by both the Adults and Community Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee and the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee.  The Committee was advised that comments from both Committees would then be passed on to the Executive Councillor Adult Care, Health and Children's Services for consideration, prior to the decision being taken.

 

The Committee was advised that a robust co-production and engagement process had been followed and where possible appropriately acted upon in the creation of the joint policy.

 

The Committee noted that putting in place a multi-agency policy would provide appropriate governance around how S.117 was discharged by the Council and the CCGs in Lincolnshire in accordance with its joint statutory obligations under the Act.  The Committee noted further that the multi-agency policy also included the involvement and engagement of Lincolnshire Partnership Foundation Trust, as the provider of mental health services and also as provider of social care services to individuals in Lincolnshire whose primary needs were mental health needs.  It was highlighted that the joint policy would help provide clarity about how the joint arrangements would operate locally to ensure that the needs of those individuals requiring after-care services were properly addressed.

 

During discussion, the Committee raised the following issues:-

 

The Committee supported the recommendation to approve the Section 117 Joint Policy.  The Committee highlighted the importance of holding discussions with patients before they left hospital to ensure that any on-going mental health needs were met through the after-care service.

 

The Committee suggested that in the first sentence of paragraph 1, whether it should read "Clinical Commissioning Groups and/or the Local Authority" as this gave a different meaning to how the duty to provide after-care services would be applied.  It was confirmed that this was a joint responsibility so should only ever read "Clinical Commissioning Groups and the Local Authority".

 

Support was given by the Committee for the need for a joined up approach for children and young people, to ensure that their needs already identified through other plans, such as Looked After Children reviews and Education, Health and Care Plans, were being met and brought together into a single plan.  This would provide an opportunity for joint funding to be identified with health colleagues when appropriate, such as when there was an Education, Health and Care Plan.

 

With regards to young offenders' institutions, it was suggested that any young offenders with mental health issues in these institutions should also be able to access after-care services once they had left.  It was noted that eligibility for after-care services was that the young person had been sectioned under Section 3, 37, 45A, 47 and 48.

 

The Committee was advised in relation to young people placed outside of Lincolnshire in mental health units, the local area retained clinical responsibility and there was no difference in the cost implications as the same funding guidance applied regardless of where the young person was placed.   However, for young people living outside of Lincolnshire, such as at university, who were sectioned under Section 3 and then discharged, it would be the area that the young person resided in once discharged who would be responsible for providing after-care services and have to pay the costs.  If the young person was transferred back to Lincolnshire, then the Council would only become responsible for providing the after-care services if the young person was then subsequently placed on a Section 3 whilst being ordinarily resident in Lincolnshire.

 

Confirmation was given that when a young person transitioned to Adult Services, the policy would be able to address the young person's mental health needs as part of the joint working arrangements.

 

With regard to Ash Villa, confirmation was given that if young people in Ash Villa were detailed under Section 3, when discharged they would then be eligible for after-care services under Section 117.

 

RESOLVED

 

1.    That the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee supported the recommendation to the Executive Councillor Adult Care, Health and Children's Services as set out in the report.

 

2.    That the comments as detailed above be passed to the Executive Councillor Adult Care, Health and Children's Services to consider when making a decision in relation to this item.

Supporting documents:

 

 
 
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