Agenda item

Please be advised that the Mayor has agreed that the call-in procedure shall not apply to this urgent decision. This is because the decision is urgent and any delay in implementation caused by the call-in procedure would seriously prejudice the Council's or the public's interests due to the fact that not taking this decision would result in the loss of night shelter provision for those that need it.  Accordingly, the Mayor has agreed that the decision is both reasonable in all circumstances, and that it should be treated as a matter of urgency. This is in accordance with Part 4, Section H, and Paragraph 18 (a) and (b) of the Council Constitution.

The Cabinet member for Housing Services, Private Renters and Planning considered the report which sought approval to vary and extend the contract with D Shelton Hotel Limited for the provision of interim Night Shelter accommodation for the period 19 September 2023 – 7 January 2024.  This would ensure that Night Shelter accommodation for vulnerable people would continue to be provided until the opening of the Clarendon Hub night shelter.

The Cabinet Member for Housing Services, Private Renters and Planning RESOLVED to:

i.              approve to vary and extend the contract under the procedures enlisted in Contract Standing Order (CSO) 16.2 for the interim night shelter accommodation to D Shelton Hotel Limited for 111 days. The accommodation is for 15 units of accommodation and is paid monthly from 19th September 2023 to 7th January 2024.  The cost for this extension will be £89,910 (excluding VAT). There will be no subsequent extension to this arrangement after 7^th January 2024.

ii.            Note the aggregated cost over the life of the contract until 7^th January 2024 will be £552,582 (excluding VAT).

Reasons for decision

Haringey Council was awarded a Rough Sleeper Initiative grant to fund a night shelter.  The plan is to use the Clarendon Hub.  Currently the Clarendon hub houses the Clarendon Recovery College, and this is due to move to a new development which has been delayed.   This has led to the continued use of the D Shelton Hotel Limited  (D Shelton), until the Clarendon Hub night shelter opens.

D Shelton provides suitable accommodation at a competitive price in a location that is easily accessible to residents and support workers. In the past, alternative accommodation options have been explored, proving that due to cost, location and availability these alternatives were not viable. This was confirmed for the following reasons:

·           HRS team had investigated the market and found that alternative accommodation that has previously been used in at least 9 boroughs (including Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Islington, Camden, Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea, Barnet, and Enfield) were unwilling to consider any future bookings. The reason for this is that our residents have complex and intersecting needs, which the hotels feel they are unable to accommodate.

·           Alternative hotels explored which offer suitable and comparative accommodation, range in price from £85 - £150 per night. In comparison D  Shelton have agreed a nightly rate of £54 per night which offers a favourable value for money option.

·           We identified a night shelter in Edmonton which could accommodate between 6 and 8 residents, with the remaining residents accommodated in different locations. This would require the support workers from Thames Reach to spend approximately 8-10 hours per week travelling between locations which would take up valuable support time.

·           Out of borough accommodation would also incur increased travel costs to enable residents to access services in Haringey i.e., Mulberry Junction and our health services in Finsbury Park. Travelling time and associated difficulties may lead to non-engagement and a potentially harmful return to rough sleeping, compounding self-neglect and therefore produce a detrimental effect on physical and mental health.

The hotel is subject to regular monitoring to maintain standards required to facilitate a stable and safe environment.  This function is carried out by Haringey Council and Thames Reach. 

·           The Hotel is visited on a monthly basis by Haringey Council staff, Thames Reach support team are co-located in the hotel, and service users provide regular feedback.  Incident reports are completed by Thames Reach staff and subsequently monitored and followed up by commissioning officers.

·           Monthly meetings are held face to face with the manager and feedback is discussed and acted on where necessary. After complaints of a mould problem in one room, the resident was moved and in accordance with the existing contract, Haringey staff carried out a room check. This consisted of smoke and fire alarms as well as room safety and suitability.

·           In the past 6 months, in response to resident feedback, we have asked for evidence of a code of conduct signed by all staff, which reflects the residents’ more complex needs.

·           Evidence of maintenance contracts are requested and checked. Infestations of pests have been dealt with in a prompt manner. Health, safety and fire procedures have been evidenced.

·           The residents have fed back to support workers that the hotel is responsive to their needs. i.e., when a resident booked in and complained that the room felt unclean due to paintwork being damaged and dirty, this was remedied within 24 hours and, whilst the work was ongoing, the resident was moved to another room.

D Shelton meets the needs of the client group by being within 20 minutes walk of our Homeless Health GP and 45 minutes walk of Mulberry Junction homelessness hub. Train and bus links are within 5 minutes’ walk. In addition, Homeless Health Inclusion Team (HHHIT) and drug and alcohol services can easily access this accommodation at least twice a week to visit those residents who are unable to travel.  Ad hoc visits from health-related support teams are also possible due to the convenience of location. Support with communication with the Thames Reach team is also available through the reception desk if residents have no access to funds for phones.

Alternative options considered

Conduct a full RFQ process - It would be possible to procure a new contract however, there are a number of ongoing projects aligned with the Interim Night shelter accommodation which are still in development. It is therefore not considered an effective use of resources to procure a new service at this time.

Do Nothing - It would be possible to leave the contract to cease at the end of the current contract period. However, there is continued high demand for this service, and it continues to achieve positive outcomes for vulnerable people whom the Council have a statutory and/or strategic responsibility for and commitment to. Therefore, it would not be in the Council’s interest to let this contract end at this time. The council is also being funded by a DLUHC grant to provide a night shelter and this would contravene our grant funding responsibilities.