Agenda item

The Service and Cabinet Member will set out their priorities for 2015/16.

Declarations of Interest:

None received.

Witnesses:

Dave Sargeant, Strategic Director, Adult Social Care

Mel Few, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, Wellbeing and Independence

Key points raised during the discussion:

The presentation that was delivered on this item is submitted as Annex 5 to these minutes.

The Strategic Director gave the Board an overview of the Adult Social Care (ASC) Directorate providing some of the key challenges facing ASC in 2015/16 such as the introduction of the second phase of the Care Act including the cap on care cost alongside the delivery of £37.5 million worth of savings.

Members were provided with information on some of the ways ASC is working to meet the challenges of rising demand as the Directorate is moving from the achievement of savings through managing supply side pressure to dealing with levels of demand. The SD drew attention to work done in conjunction with the Local Government Association (LGA) on data-sharing as part of the Directorate’s continual improvement programme.  ASC is also in the process of compiling an Accommodation and Support Strategy which explores how best to meet the requirements of those with social care needs within the existing estate. Specifically, this will consider how ASC’s estate can be flexed to meet the needs of those with social care needs. The strategy will include details of how the six residential care homes which are in the process of being closed can be used to provider support services.

The Board was also given details about the In Touch professional support services which recognises that not everyone needs continual support, instead the In Touch team has been developed to maintain contact with those people who require lower levels of support and to make sure that their needs are being met appropriately.

The SD advised that the six outstanding Section 75 agreements, which are a part of the Better Care Fund (BCF) and need to be signed by the council and each of the six Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCG) in Surrey, are currently the undergoing legal review by each organisation.. These are in the final stages of agreement and are expected to be completed soon.

·         Further information was requested on the overlap between Adult and Children’s Services which could be used to improve service delivery by both directorates. The SD stressed that there were is a significant overlap highlighting areas such as information governance, safeguarding, complaints handling and customer relations as areas for collaboration to improve service delivery and produce savings. In particular, the Transitions Service - which manages the pathway for people with care needs as they move into adulthood is an area that Adult Social Care encourages the review of packages to make sure service users make use of their assets and receive an appropriate level of support.

·            The Board asked the SD which parts of the Directorate would cause him most concern if the Service was subject to a review of its service delivery.. The SD advised that overall he has   confidence in the level of service that the Directorate provides to Surrey residents. Work is being done to improve quality assurance processes following problems identified at organisations such Mid-Staffordshire NHS Trust. Many of the services delivered by the Directorate are through private and voluntary sector providers so there is a need to ensure that the quality of care from these providers is of the expected standards of quality and safety. The Board were reminded that the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has oversight of the care market through its regulatory and inspection functions and the Directorate and the CQC regularly share information. The Board was also informed that Internal Audit frequently conduct reviews projects and services. These reviews are welcomed as is important to understand strengths and weaknesses and can often be the catalyst for innovation.

·            The Board referenced the Supporting Families programme as a particularly successful example of multi-agency working and asked whether there is the opportunity to learn from best practice through this programme. The SD acknowledged that the issue of professional boundaries persists and this can be pronounced in regard to health and social care integration and the delivery of the BCF. However the Directorate’s commissioning and operational functions are increasingly co-located with clinical commissioning groups and district and borough councils.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

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ACTION/ FURTHER INFORMATION TO BE PROVIDED:

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