Issue - meetings

To consider a report of the Corporate Director for People.

The report provides a summary of the implications of the Care Act.

The Scrutiny Committee are invited to consider and comment on the report.

Officer Contact: Vincent Fraga on Tel: 474 4401 or email: vincent.fraga@stockport.gov.uk

A representative of the Service Director (Adult Social Care) submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) providing the Scrutiny Committee with an update on the key features of the Care Act that received Royal Assent in May 2014.

Key themes of the Act included:

·         introduction of the principle where a person’s overall well-being was at the forefront of their care and support

·         the promotion of the integration of care and support with health services

·         putting people and their carers in control of their care and support

Implementation of the Act would be in two phases: the first in April 2015, which would include the majority of the provisions, and the second in April 2016, for the introduction of care accounts, a cap on care costs and an appeals process.

The Executive Councillor (Adult Care Services) (Cllr Keith Holloway) attended the meeting to answer questions from the Scrutiny Committee on implications of the Act for Stockport.

The following comments were made/ issues raised:-

·         The implications of the introduction of national criteria on the ability of the Council to tailor services to meet local community needs, and the impact of the criteria on existing service users.

·         Confusion in the report about professional boundaries and where these were to be reinforced, or to be overcome, particularly in relation to housing. Providing seamless service to users was to be preferred.

·         The new role of the Care Quality Commission in assessing provider’s financial stability.

·         Concerns raised about the extent of the consultation and whether this would include service users and other stakeholders.

·         The importance of improving performance on delayed discharge and that this would feature in the Better Care Fund plan.

·         Further guidance was awaited on the proposed appeals process for assessments.

·         There was no prescription within the Act in relation to the form of assessments and who could complete them.

·         Concerns were expressed about the imposition of a financial model on Local Authorities and more detail was needed.

·         Although the focus on prevention and the underlying principles of the Act were welcomed, concerns were expressed about the impact of the detailed provisions of the Act on service users and the cost implications for Local Authorities. Concerns were expressed about the lack of detail and clarity on a number of key areas, particularly given the April 2015 implementation date.

RESOLVED – (1) That the report be noted.

(2) That the Service Director (Adult Social Care) be requested to submitted a further report on the following aspects of the Care Act 2014:-

·         national eligibility criteria for care and the impact on the Council’s ability to make decisions locally;

·         implications of changes to the private pension system on rates of charges and how deferred payments would operate in practice and the impact on Stockport;

·         further detail on the delegation of local authority functions and mechanisms for ensuring appropriate oversight and control by the Council;

·         cross border payments and the impact on Stockport;

·         impact on existing services users of new eligibility criteria, particularly if they were subject to a review;

·         further detail on the financial modelling;

·         feedback received from the first phase consultation; and

·         any other information or developments.