Issue - decisions

SERVICE AREA:

Adult Services

SUBJECT MATTER:

ALLOCATION OF £1.154 MILLION ADULT SOCIAL CARE WINTER PLANS FUNDING FOR 2018-19

DECISION:

1.    That approval be given to the following schemes to reduce social isolation, support people to remain living safely at home and to promote a timely and safe discharge from hospital:

·         Block booking 10 transitional care home beds;

·         In-house home care service;

·         Payment of 2019-20 fee uplift to care homes brought forward to 1 January 2019;

·         Trusted Assessor posts in IUCT;

·         Additional Social Worker capacity;

·         Additional Occupational Therapy / Manual Handling Capacity;

·         Holding payment for beds at homes with high demand and low vacancies;

·         Projects with the voluntary and community sector.

2.    Delegated authority be given to the Director of Adult Social Care, following discussions with the Director of Operations, Integrated Care Foundation Trust, to manage the unallocated balance of £0.315 million in accordance with the funding awarded to 31 March 2019.

DECISION TAKER(S):

Strategic Commissioning Board

DATE OF DECISION:

23 January 2019

REASON FOR DECISION:

The investment over the winter period will have a positive impact on the people who access and use the services that are funded through this money.

ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS REJECTED (if any):

The Government has allocated £1.154 million to the Council to support the system with winter pressures.  To not implement the proposals would affect the quality of responses to people who are at risk of being socially isolated and require support from Adult Social Care to determine their care when being discharged from hospital.

CONSULTEES:

None

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:

(Authorised by Section 151 Officer)

LEGAL IMPLICATIONS:

(Authorised by Borough Solicitor)

The rationale for the additional monies is so that Councils have more available to help ease winter pressures on the NHS and to use it to get people who don’t need to be in hospital, but do need care, back home, back into their communities.  The aim is that this will in turn free up hospital beds so that people who need to be in hospital get the hospital care they need.

Members should be satisfied therefore that the proposals set out in this report will meet this expectation, and if there is a challenge as to how the monies are allocated there is evidence of a direct link back in support.

The balance still not allocated should likewise be spent within the timeframe, i.e. by 31 March 2019, and outcomes of all allocations recorded where possible.  It may be that the Department of Health, and others, will want to see a corresponding reduction in the number of beds traditionally blocked by patients no longer needing to stay, but unable to return home because of their environment created by the winter, and so the ability to measure this should be developed and readily accessible.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST:

None.

DISPENSATION GRANTED BY STANDARDS COMMITTEE ATTACHED:

Not applicable.

REFERENCE DOCUMENTS:

The background papers relating to this report can be inspected by contacting the report author Sandra Whitehead, Assistant Director (Adult Services), by:

Telephone: 0161 342 3414

e-mail: sandra.whitehead@tameside.gov.uk