Agenda item

Members' Questions

To receive any questions from Members of the Committee on issues which are not already the subject of an item of business on the Committee agenda – Council Procedure Rule 16.8. (NOTE: a period of up to 10 minutes shall be allocated for Members’ supplementary questions).

Minutes:

56.1

The Committee received two Members’ questions, for which written responses were provided.

 

 

56.2
  1. In the light of the autumn budget and the NI increase can you tell me how that may exacerbate the budgetary overspend and pressures for SCC. 

 

There will be a direct cost for staff employed by SCC, for which a detailed estimate is being prepared by payroll.  Our expectation is that this will be matched by additional funding outside of the £1.3bn announced for Local Government.  There will be a secondary impact throughout our supply chain as suppliers and providers increase prices to cover their rising costs.  We are working on calculating the potential maximum additional pressure for social care, if we were to cover the costs across the board, as this is where the biggest immediate impact would be felt.  It will be more difficult to estimate other potential cost increases (and when they might emerge) as it will be dependent on contracts, individual supplier circumstances and market forces.

 

  1. What analysis has been done or is intended alongside our delivery partners with especial reference to the care sector, the effect it will have on delivery in this sector and the important service it delivers.

 

Adult Care and Wellbeing are due to take the annual fee setting paper to Committee in Dec.  At this point in time, the proposed fee will cover the National Living Wage increase on staffing costs and CPI on non-staffing costs.  After this, consultation will begin with providers.  We are expecting a clearer picture to emerge following the consultation, at which point SCC should have received confirmation of funding from the Local Government Finance Settlement.

 

 

56.3

Councillor Hurst asked a supplementary question regarding when then decision would be taken on Adult Health and Social Care annual fees. The Director of Finance and Commercial Services responded, and stated that the settlement from Central Government was not expected until the end of the year and that the latest date would be the 19th December 2024.

 

Supporting documents: