Decision details

To amend the implementation date for the New Care Home Payment Model approved by the Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care on 11^th March 2020 - http://democracy.sheffield.gov.uk/ieDecisionDetails.aspx?ID=2477

That the revised date for the implementation of the new Care Home Payment Model, across the care homes the Council contracts with, will be April 2021.

The reasons for the decision are listed below:-

• We believe the key risks associated with an April 2021 implementation can be effectively mitigated, please see below:-

-       Capacity to transfer direct debits – mitigated by recruitment of the Residential Care Homes Payments and Support Team and the requirement of care homes to ensure ‘Direct Debit Mandate Forms’ are completed for their residents / families / representatives.

-       Capacity to get data quality issues sorted – mitigated the by new account management model, where officers in the Residential Care Homes Payments and Support Team will be responsible for a designated number of care homes and their respective residents. These officers will work closely with Social Workers and Care Managers placing people in their respective care homes, helping to ensure support packages are consistently, accurately and timely recorded on the system, with corresponding CPLI’s, to support timely and accurate payment and charging.

-       Capacity to transfer people lacking mental capacity – mitigated by the requirement on care homes to leave residents on net payment terms until a Mental Capacity Assessment is in place. Further support around mitigation in this area will come from the Social Care Accounts Service’s (SCAS) dedicated Social Worker Hardship, who will help undertake Mental Capacity Assessments where required.

-       Further Covid – 19 outbreaks – mitigated by clear criteria to delay implementation, whether by individual care homes, on a case per case basis, through to a total delay across all care homes, where the nature of the outbreak dictates.

• Delaying implementation past April 2021 will result in the Council operating outside of statutory guidance for longer, in the way we currently pay our care home providers.

• Following extensive engagement with care homes, it became clear that there was a desire to implement in April 2021 and that care homes would agree to the requirements above.

·       The financial impact the pandemic has had on the care homes we contract with has been significant. There is no doubt that implementing the New Care Home Payment Model in April 2021 will support care home providers’ financial sustainability and will be seen as an integral measure in the Council’s financial support to them.

We considered a revised implementation date of September 2021, but for the reasons above, decided on implementation in April 2021.