Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors John Healy, Richard Allan Jones and Neil Gethin.

None

Councillors Jane Kidd declared a nonpecuniary interest in Agenda Item No.5 by virtue of being employed by an association that provides services for those with disabilities.

[A period not exceeding 20 minutes for statements from up

to 5 members of the public on matters within the

Committee’s remit, proposing action(s) which may be

considered or contribute towards the future development of

the Committee’s work programme.]

Mr Doug Wright made a public statement which related to Item 6. OSMC Workplan.  Reference was made to reductions that had been outlined in the national budget, through the joint commissioning agreement underpinning the Doncaster Place Plan.

Mr Wright felt that there had been a lack of scrutiny around the whole joint partnership arrangements in Doncaster that will be in shadow form from April 2018. He made reference to today’s agreement of the Ernst and Young report about the future of the Accountable Care System specifically referring to Doncaster Council, the Health and Wellbeing Board, its governance arrangements and other aspects with stakeholder and overview etc.

Mr Wright raised concern that in 2016 Sustainable Transform Plan identified a £571m Health and Adult Social Care group area deficiency that needed to be bridged.   He reported that the claimed cost of delivering will be £139.5m for Doncaster and that this figure had not changed since 2016.  Reference was made to the Mayor expressing concerns about the financial aspect of this and potential areas that could be considered including smoking obesity or emergency services. 

Mr Wright also felt that there had been no comprehensive scrutiny or analysis undertaken of what was going to happen from April 2018.  He expressed concern that the joint scrutiny health committee hardly ever met, and then chose to meet in places such as Matlock.  It was asked for it to be reconsidered as to how this affects future running.  It was acknowledged that it was a complex area with a budget that will include cuts to the Better Care Fund

In response, Members were reminded that this had been taken to Cabinet indicating the plans for the year ahead and would return to Cabinet in April 2018 with additional detail. It was acknowledged that it was very important for this to be done correctly in Doncaster and that partners were on board. It was added that some areas had the potential to be considered regionally or that budgets may be pooled with partners.

It was acknowledged that it was about shifting the emphasis to be more about hospital commissioning.  Members were informed that such specifics were being worked on at the moment including developing relations with community and providers.  It was explained that this was a debate that will happen nationally, and it was been shared that the savings needed will not only be achieved through making cuts. Some of the issues faced were referred to and included homelessness, looking at a more flexible housing strategy and being around reduced presentation at Accident and Emergency. It was noted that positive discussions were being undertaken with partners regarding work in areas where the Council knows it can progress together with partners

It was acknowledged that any decisions would need to go to Council in order to make a full change and involve scrutiny as appropriate.  It was acknowledged that there will be less resources going forward whilst trying to maintain better services for citizens in the borough.

The purpose of this report was to give further consideration to the Mayor’s draft Budget proposals 2018/19 – 2020/21 and develop a formal response. The Committee’s response will enable the Mayor to take account of these when presenting her proposals to Council on 5th March, 2018.

Adult Social Care

Members were informed that it was about maximising what individuals could do for themselves. It was recognised that figures had reduced over the last couple of years as for most there were better alternatives as well as being beneficial for the budget.

It was explained that there was an ambition to support the living wage and to offer uplifting salary rates.  It was explained that this approach would support the effective delivery of services, and provide additional money for demographics as there were a higher number of people in need of support.  It was further added that there would be more investment in those services that promoted independent living.  It was recognised that although it was challenging, it was achievable with an intention to continue to bring those numbers further down.

It was explained that there were 105 individuals at working age, living within a residential provision.  Members were informed that work was being undertaken closely with those people; making best interest assessments and recognising that some could be based within supported living instead of residential.

Supported Living - In respect of savings made, it was explained that supported living provided assistance to 300 people who received 45 hours of support per week.  It was emphasised that moving forward was about strength based thinking, providing investment and setting up individuals in more independent settings and working on that alternative. 

Housing Related Support Service – It was acknowledged that this would be a challenging area with the Council and its partners reviewing its (discretionary) housing related support services, with a view to the transition of current service users to more appropriate forms of support.  It was explained that there were currently 12 related contracts covering areas such as mental health, children, homelessness and learning disabilities. It was commented that many of the contracts were considered to be quite traditional in approach and that with same services being delivered for less money, there needed to be a great deal of work undertaken in order to be more efficient.  It was noted that new ways of working were being investigated for the benefit of the people concerned in addition to releasing the necessary savings.

Day Services Work – It was explained that this service was being modernised to give service users better choice and control with more options.  It was recognised that far less people were now going to day centres.

Intermediate Care – It was acknowledged that good work had been undertaken and this had the potential to deliver some good benefits.

Direct Payments – It was explained that direct payments were retendering their money management services and looking at keeping bureaucracy to a minimum and help people make their own choices.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 41.

The Committee considered the Scrutiny Work Plan, noted the current position and work to be undertaken by the Committee and Panel’s for the remainder of the 2017/18 Civic Year.

RESOLVED: that the report, be noted.