Agenda item

(Report of the Director of Adult and Housing Services. To be introduced by the Cabinet Member for Housing). To consider proposals with respect to the Older People’s Support Service.

Prior to consideration of the report a deputation was heard from Mr Chris Taylor of UNISON.

Mr Taylor noted that consultation undertaken by the Council on the proposals had been good and that UNISON had been fully involved in this process from the outset. UNISON welcomed the Council’s attempts to minimise compulsory redundancies; however, it had significant concerns regarding the proposals and their impact on residents.

Mr Taylor noted that in addition to cleaning and laundry services residents would also be losing a range of additional help they currently received with everyday tasks such as collecting prescriptions, shopping, minor repairs and accompanying residents to medical appointments. He contended that the support provided by Scheme Support Assistants (SSAs) enabled residents to continue to live independently rather than requiring more resource intensive care. As such ceasing to provide the service may lead to greater longer term costs and represented a false economy.

He asserted that if residents had to use their Benefits to pay for cleaning and laundry services and other for other assistance currently provided by the SSAs they may be pushed into poverty.

Mr Taylor noted that the report sought approval for more that twenty posts to be deleted under delegated authority; however, his understanding was that the deletion of more than twenty posts required the approval of the Council’s Corporate Committee and he requested clarification on this point. Mr Taylor concluded by arguing that the proposed use of a consultant represented an unwarranted expense and suggested that staff with expertise in this area that had been made redundant may be able to undertake this work.

The Leader thanked Mr Taylor for his deputation and invited the Cabinet Member for Health and Adult Services to respond.

The Cabinet Member for Health and Adult Services thanked Mr Taylor for his deputation and noted that the wellbeing of residents was of paramount importance. In order to ensure that residents did not feel isolated an Activities Coordinator was being appointed as part of the proposals. Residents would also be supported by the Council in finding alternative assistance and in ensuring that they were receiving all of the Benefits they were entitled to.

The Leader asked officers to respond to points raised by Mr Taylor. Cabinet was advised that in July 2012, as part of a report considered by Council, the level of redundancies that could be considered under delegated authority had been increased to fifty and therefore the proposals set out in the report with regard to staff redundancies did not require agreement from the Council’s Corporate Committee.

With regard to Mr Taylor’s suggestion that a member of staff should be used, rather than a consultant as proposed, Cabinet was advised that the person being employed was a long term member of agency staff with an extensive understanding of arrangements in Haringey.

The Cabinet Member for Housing noted that the level of savings required necessitated a reduction in non statutory services of this kind. Whilst this was regrettable, achieving the savings would enable the Council to continue to provide services to those in the most need. Measures would be taken to mitigate this and support would be provided to residents affected by the changes in order to ensure that they were in receipt of all of the Benefits that they were entitled to. Residents would also be put in contact with Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) groups that provided services of this type.

The Leader noted that the decision to cease these services was regrettable; however, the financial challenges facing the Council meant that a range of non statutory services this would cease to be provided. She reiterated that as part of the process assistance would be provided by the Council to residents affected to ensure that they received all of the support that they were entitled to.

Cabinet considered the report, which sought agreement to the recommissioning of the Older People’s Support Service with effect from 1 April 2013. The report also sought agreement, in principle, that ineligible tasks would no longer be funded by the Housing Related Support Programme.

RESOLVED:

1. That the proposals with respect to the recommissioning of the Older People’s Support Service and their implementation with effect from 1 April 2013 be approved.

2. That the feedback from consultation with residents be noted and the mitigation set out in 5.15 of the report, involving the re-assessment of affected residents and assisting them to make appropriate alternative arrangements for domiciliary care in accordance with their needs, be endorsed.

3. That the principle that ineligible tasks would no longer be funded by the Housing Related Support Programme, including the personal cleaning and laundry services carried out by the Scheme Support Assistants for individual residents of sheltered housing schemes, in order to contribute to the required savings, be confirmed.

4. That the staffing implications set out in paragraphs 5.20 – 5.24 of the report be noted.

Alternative Options Considered

The option of continuing to fund ineligible tasks had been discounted as this would not contribute to the achievement of savings nor would it comply with the HRS commissioning principles agreed by Cabinet in July 2012.

Reasons for Decision

The Housing Related Support Programme is required to achieve £1.5m savings in 2013/14. The proposed recommissioning of the Older People’s Support Service and its implementation with effect from 1 April 2013 will contribute £386k to the achievement of this target.

In order to contribute to the required savings, the principle that ineligible tasks will no longer be funded by the Housing Related Support Programme will be applied. This means that the personal cleaning and laundry carried out by the Scheme Support Assistants for residents of sheltered housing schemes will cease to be funded and alternative, appropriate funding will be sought.

Access to appropriate funding for domiciliary care is effective mitigation of the proposals set out in the report.  The proposed re-assessment of affected residents, along with assisting them to make appropriate alternative arrangements for domiciliary care in accordance with their needs, will help to maintain services as appropriate while making budget savings.