Agenda item

(To receive a report by Alina Hackney (Senior Strategic Commissioning Support Manager) which will be considered by the Executive Councillor: Adult Care, Health and Children's Services. The comments agreed by this Committee will be referred to the Executive Councillor)

The Committee considered a report which was due to be considered by the Executive Councillor for Adult Care, Health and Children's Services between 17 to 24 March 2017.

The Committee agreed to pass on the following comments to the Executive Councillor for Adult Care, Health and Children's Services as part of her consideration of this item.

·         The Committee supported the involvement of the voluntary sector as part of the proposed arrangements and welcomed the proposals for fortnightly reviews to keep service users informed and reduce the volume of avoidable contacts querying how cases are progressing;

·         The Committee highlighted concerns about the capacity of the proposed arrangements and highlighted the need to ensure planning was in place to allow for increased demand and growth on the service. Officers confirmed that a 2.5% increase in service capacity had been planned as part of the contract specification;

·         The Committee queried the proposal not to recommission the home from hospital transport element of the current service and instead rely on NHS provision. In addition, the Committee queried how this change would impact residents who are required to access services outside of Lincolnshire. Officers confirmed that the service needs to be flexible in relation to the Lincolnshire patients it supports and additional that additional work would be undertaken with the NHS;

·         A member of the Committee highlighted the need to ensure the proposed reduction in delayed discharge and better coordination of services was achieved as part of the re-procurement process. Officers highlighted the benefits of the preventative side of the Wellbeing Service in helping to reduce the need for hospital admissions, the work being undertaken in aiding hospital discharge and support provided to patients returning home;

·         The Committee highlighted that one of the key challenges for this service had been identified in the report as limited accountability. A member of the committee queried the proposal to allow the new provider to sub-contract to other providers, highlighting that these arrangements had the possibility to further impact the level of accountability on service delivery. Officers confirmed that the new contract would provide a robust framework to hold the contracted provider to account, and that similar arrangements would be made between the contractor and any sub-contractors;

·         A member of the Committee highlighted the need for any new provider to meet their obligations under TUPE arrangements. Officers confirmed that work was underway as part of the assessment process to ensure that TUPE obligations were met;

·         A member of the Committee highlighted the twelve week generic support service support as part of the 'Description of Services' and queried whether this would work in conjunction with the newly formed new Neighbourhood Teams;

·         The Committee highlighted concern in relation to the sub-contracting arrangements and the possibility that these arrangements could add an additional tier of management and bureaucracy to the service, and not result in a real-term saving to the County Council. Officers confirmed that as part of any bid, providers would need to demonstrate affordability as well as the ability to meet the agreed level of service;

·         The Committee highlighted the need to maintain the level of involvement and contact with District Councils, CAB and other additional services as part of the new arrangements, in order to support and promote continued joined up working.

RESOLVED

1.    That the Committee support the recommendations to the Executive Councillor as set out in the report;

2.    That the comments made, in relation to this item, be agreed and passed to the Executive Councillor for Adult Care, Health and Children's Services.