Agenda item

3.1

Public Question Concerning Supported Living Services

Susan Highton asked a question concerning the proposal to look at alternative providers of Supported Living, rather than these services remaining with the existing provider, the Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust, which she stated, had a series of significant consequences, as follows:

·         The cost of running down the service within the NHS are estimated in excess of £6M.

·         The service users will not have a choice of service provider as suggested but rather will be told who has been chosen to provide the service for them.

·         The current service provided by the NHS routinely has high dependency cases referred to it as other providers do not appear able or willing to take up these, with no NHS provision remaining who will pick up these high dependency cases.

·         At meetings with service users’ families and carers we have consistently been told they wish to remain with the NHS provider. Why has no thorough and full consultation been undertaken with them in advance of any changes?

·         One proposal is to split the current service into several smaller contracts and these could include separate contracts for individual units on the same site. Currently, in busy times and emergencies NHS colleagues can call on other care workers providing the contract to assist in maintaining safe care provision. How will this work if 2 or more contractors are working across the same site.

Susan Highton stated that the budgetary pressures the City Council and the NHS have had and continue to face were understood, but this proposal involves high cost to the public purse and risk that with no proper alternative provision to fall back on, service users in crisis will be referred to hospital and then expensive out of city support as the only option available.

She asked why this proposal hasn't been referred to the appropriate Scrutiny Committee and a thorough and proper consultation carried out with service users, their families and carers.

Councillor Mary Lea, the Cabinet Member for Health, Care and Independent Living, responded to the questions. She said that the safety and wellbeing of service users was paramount. The Council had, over the past 3 years, increased the budget for services to people with learning disabilities, despite the context of funding cuts to the Council. The Council needed to ensure that it could deliver services in a cost effective way and make sure that people received the right care and were safe and well.

The Supported Living model for people with learning disabilities had general support and was considered the best model. It gave people independence and allowed them to make their own choices and was different to the service required in a residential care home.

The Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust had put itself forward as a potential service provider and there were also other supported living providers which had also put themselves forward. Approximately only 1 in 10 people in Sheffield in Supported Living settings were supported by the Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust.

The Council will work with residents in the 9 residential homes in order to select a provider and make sure there were high quality standards and that costs were reasonable. In similar processes within other care settings, residents had been engaged and independent advocacy had ensured that they had a say.

Financial pressures meant that the Council could not justify paying a high price for a service, if it was able to obtain services of an equivalent or higher quality from another provider.

Consultation had taken place with carers and service users.

Councillor Lea stated that she would provide a detailed response to the questions in writing.

3.2

Public Question Concerning Governance of the Health and Wellbeing Board

John Kay asked whether there were opportunities to use the Foundation Trust model, which had been in place for some time, and apply it in the governance of the Health and Wellbeing Board, to promote resource-sharing and increase engagement with the Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust.

Tim Moorhead, the Co-Chair of the Board, responded to the question. He stated that the Board was a formal committee of the City Council and there were not separate arrangements in place for governance. The overarching role of the Board was to make sure it was satisfied that the respective organisations in the City were delivering, including the Clinical Commissioning Group, the City Council and providers of health and social care. There had already been several engagement events with patients, service users and the public in general. However, the membership model adopted by the Foundation Trust may have some aspects which were worth further consideration.

Ian Atkinson, Accountable Officer, Sheffield Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), stated that it would be potentially sensible to see how the existing membership of an organisation like the Foundation Trust might be used by the Clinical Commissioning Group.

Sue White, Chief Executive, Voluntary Action Sheffield, stated that Healthwatch was the mechanism through which patient and public voice could be represented and there was a need to take stock of all the organisations in the City that performed such a role. Healthwatch had a place on the Health and Wellbeing Board, through which the views of patients and public could be brought to the Board’s attention.