Issue - meetings

To consider a report of the Executive Councillor (Adult Care Services)

This report outlines proposals to modernise the Council’s approach to community meals provision and ancillary catering services in line with the direction of social care policy towards individual choice, using personal budgets as appropriate. The Council would continue to offer assistance to people in arranging meal provision but not in the future act as a commissioner or provider of this service.

The proposed change to the model of service provision and funding arrangements to meet this critical and substantial need could deliver significant savings.

The Executive is asked to consider the details included in this report and the proposed plans to consult on the potential de-commissioning of the community meals service.

The recommendation is to approve further work to examine the proposal as outlined in the report including completion of the equality impact assessment informed by the consultation with key stakeholders involving all service users/carers/families, relevant staff groups and meals provider organisations.

Officer contact: Vince Fraga, 0161 474 4401, vincent.fraga@stockport.gov.uk

The Executive Councillor (Adult Care Services) submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) inviting the Executive to consider proposals to modernise the Council’s approach to community meals provision and ancillary catering services to bring this in line with the direction of social care policy toward individual choice and personal budgets. The new model of service would seek to work with service users, and their carers and families, to make individually tailored arrangements for their meals, but the Council would no longer act as a commissioner or provider of the service. The proposals would be subject to further consultation with stakeholders.

The Executive Councillor highlighted the valuable discussions at the Adult Social Care & Housing Scrutiny Committee that had further informed the proposals in the report.

RESOLVED – That proposed consultation with key stakeholders on the potential de-commissioning of the Community Meals Service be approved.

To consider a report of the Corporate Director for People.

The report details proposals to modernise the council’s approach to community meals provision and ancillary catering services. This would involve officers working closely with people (and their families/carers) to make more individually tailored meal arrangements as part of the support planning process using personal budgets as appropriate. The Council would continue to provide assistance to people in arranging meals support but not in future act as a commissioner or provider of the service.

Consideration of this item was deferred from the last meeting of the Scrutiny Committee pending the submission of a detailed financial overview of the community meals service over the previous five year period; the potential options available for the retention of the service; and information on those alternative providers currently operating on a commercial basis within the marketplace

The Scrutiny Committee is recommended to note the report and comment on the proposals.

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

A representative of the Corporate Director for People submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) detailing proposals to modernise the Council’s approach to community meals provision and ancillary catering services by continuing to provide assistance to people in arranging meals support by making more individually tailored meal arrangements using personal budgets.  As part of the proposals, the Council would cease to act as a commissioner or provider of the service.

The Executive Councillor for Adult Care Services (Councillor Keith Holloway) attended the meeting to answer councillors’ questions.

The following comments were made/ issues raised:-

·         The process for setting income targets for the service was flawed and did not reflect the income received in previous years.

·         There was a need to ensure that the quality of any alternative community meals provision was monitored.

·         A review would be undertaken of current service users in the context of the wider services they received.

·         The community meals service had added benefits in terms of safeguarding and identifying concerns.

·         Concern was expressed in relation to the timing of the consultation with particular regard to it taking place over the winter when service users may be more reluctant to participate. 

RESOLVED – That the report be noted.

To consider a report of the Corporate Director for People.

The report details proposals to modernise the council’s approach to community meals provision and ancillary catering services. This would involve officers working closely with people (and their families/carers) to make more individually tailored meal arrangements as part of the support planning process using personal budgets as appropriate. The Council would continue to provide assistance to people in arranging meals support but not in future act as a commissioner or provider of the service.

The Scrutiny Committee is recommended to note the report and comment on the proposals.

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

A representative of the Corporate Director for People submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) detailing proposals to modernise the Council’s approach to community meals provision and ancillary catering services.

The proposal would involve officers working closely with service users and their families/carers to make more individually tailored meal arrangements as part of the support planning process using personal budgets as appropriate. The Council would continue to provide assistance to people in arranging meals support but not in future act as a commissioner or provider of the service.

The Executive Councillor (Adult Care Services) attended the meeting to answer councillors’ questions.

The following comments were made/ issues raised:-

·         It was commented that the use of the term ‘modernise’ was being used to describe a reduction in the range of options available to service users.  In response it was stated that since the establishment of the traditional community meals service, a number of alternative providers had emerged that provided a significant level of consumer choice more efficiently than the in-house provider currently could. 

·         It was stated that it was difficult to assess the ongoing financial viability of the current service due to the lack of budgetary information within the report for those years prior to the 2013/14 financial year.

·         The data presented in the table as ‘deficit actual’ for the 2014/15 financial year was an estimate based on the year-to-date deficit.

·         Concern was expressed with regard to the significant differential between the forecast deficit and that being achieved and the basis on which these projections were made was queried.

·         The basis on which consultation would take place with service users was discussed with specific regard to the work that would be done to review the specific needs of each service user to determine the care and support that would be provided in the future.  Further information with regard to the additional pressure this exercise would place on staff within Adult Social Care and the costs associated with this was requested.

·         The impact of a decision to terminate in the in-house provision of the community meals service was discussed with regard to the unintended consequences of any such decision including the added-value provided by the service such as social contact.

·         Independent providers were able to provide a range of additional services on a sliding tariff including gardening, domestic services and dealing with correspondence. 

·         Concern was expressed in relation to the sustainability of the business models of some of the independent providers in a competitive market place.

·         It was commented that there were a number of private customers of the in-house community meals service which demonstrated the quality of the service that was being provided.

·         More consideration needed to be given to how the in-house community meals service could more effectively be marketed to a wider private customer base and how the service could be maintained though additional investment.  In response it was stated that the Council had confirmed to Solutions SK that there was limited capital available for investment in the service and their provisional view was that they could not continue to provide the service without a significant subsidy.

RESOLVED – That the Corporate Director for People be requested to submit a report to the next meeting of the Scrutiny Committee providing a detailed financial overview of the community meals service over the previous five year period; the potential options available for the retention of the service; and information on those alternative providers currently operating on a commercial basis within the marketplace.