Agenda item

(To receive a report by Rachel West, Senior Contract Officer, and David Clark Programme Manager, which provides the Committee with an update on the performance of the first year of the Wellbeing Service which went live on 1 April 2018)

Consideration was given to a report which set out the performance for the first year of the new delivery model for the Wellbeing Service.  It was reported that the Wellbeing Service was re-commissioned by Lincolnshire County Council and successfully went live on 1 April 2018.  The service was delivered by Wellbeing Lincs, a consortium of all seven district councils as described in the previous report to this Committee on 28 November 2018.  East Lindsey District Council (ELDC) was the contracted lead provider.

The service was available to individuals aged 18 years and over who were resident within Lincolnshire and met the eligibility criteria.  The Wellbeing Service was designed to promote confidence and resilience to support individuals to live independently for longer.  Following assessment, the range of services offered included individualised generic support, simple aids to daily living, minor adaptations, 24-hour responder provision and signposting.

Members were advised that the contract started in April 2018 and would end in March 2023 with the opportunity to extend for a further five years pending review.

The Committee was provided with the opportunity to ask questions to the officers present in relation to the information contained within the report and some of the points raised during discussion included the following:

·         It was noted that the Committee had been informed of a lot of aspects which were going well with the Service, such as the performance, but it was queried if there was anything that was not working quite as well.  It was commented that this was the first year of transition and when moving from three providers to one there would always be challenges, for example getting the staff to work in a consistent way across the service.

·         A pressure on the service had been demand, as the referral rate had been far in excess of what was expected.  It was acknowledged that this had been a challenge and managers had to continually adjust procedures in order to manage this.

·         It was queried whether there had been any liaison with medical crisis teams, acute hospitals, the Peter Hodgkinson Centre and other mental health units.  Members were advised that there were not individuals specifically working on these wards but if it was identified that there was a need for support with mental health concerns then the Service would act as the enabler in getting the necessary services involved.

·         Work was being done to ensure that the right referral pathways were in place and there were positive relationships with other services.

·         It was queried whether there was any working with voluntary organisations.  It was reported that when ELDC led the initial bid, they put together a team to develop networks and referral pathways.  It was ensured that there was a seamless transition to services that could support that person.

·         It was noted that in terms of the key referral pathways, they were not 'one way traffic'.  For example, when Fire and Rescue Advocates went to visit people for a fire check, if they had a wellbeing need, they would be referred through to the Wellbeing Service.  The customer did not need to have an assessment.

·         In response to a query it was stated that the Wellbeing Service worked well with the NHS in Lincolnshire.

·         It was queried whether there was any work with hospitals in Peterborough and Grimsby as Lincolnshire residents would travel cross-border if it was their nearest hospital.  It was noted that this was something that the Service wanted to develop going into its second year.  There was however, a range of other staff operating in hospitals in and out of the County who had been fully briefed on this Service.  There was still some work to be done on how people were to be referred and establishing the referral pathways.

·         Work was underway to create an integrated system as far as possible to enable the right level of support to be provided to the individual.

·         Over 300 agencies referred into the Wellbeing Service.

·         It was queried if there was someone with total responsibility for the Service to ensure that people did not fall through the gaps, and Members were advised that this would be the Executive Director for Adult Care and Community Wellbeing.  It was important that the Council did not over prescribe and tell people what they should do, as the aim was for colleagues to work together on the ground as people lived complicated lives.  The Wellbeing Service would provide a wraparound service and needed to be able to work locally to make the right decisions to help people.

·         It was queried how people could contact the service, and it was reported that this could be done through the Customer Service Centre which was open Monday-Friday from 8.30am – 5.00pm, but there was also an emergency duty team.  The general policy was to not have a dedicated number for the service, it did not matter which number a person rang, it was about getting into the system.  It was difficult to rely on one number and one team in a place like Lincolnshire.

·         It was commented that the work of the Service was very encouraging and positive.

·         The resettlement service operated 24/7 and provided extended cover for those who needed support to settle back at home.  This would then be fed back into the Wellbeing Service.

·         The eligibility for this Service was being a Lincolnshire resident, and was not affected if their GP surgery was across the border.  There was a need to ensure that Adult Social Care staff in these areas knew how to refer people into this service.

·         Members were very pleased with the performance of this service.

·         The Executive Councillor for Adult Care, Health and Children's Services wished that her thanks to the team be recorded.  It was not thought that there were any other authorities that carried out this type of preventative work.  Lower numbers of people coming into Adult Social Care that needed intensive support had been seen.  However, it was too soon for there to be any evidence that this was due to this Service.

RESOLVED

            That the Committee note the performance of the first year of the new delivery model of the Wellbeing Service and request that a further update be brought at the end of the second year.