Agenda item

To consider a report of the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health.

Within this report and appendix we provide a further update on our strategic approach in responding to the review of the medium-term financial plan. This follows on from the report presented at the Cabinet meeting on the 28th September 2022 and scrutiny committees during October. In particular it includes updated proposals within the appendix for scrutiny comment ahead of budget council in February.

The report outlines the budget proposals being considered by the Cabinet to address financial and demand challenges, enable longer term transformation, and ensure the delivery of shared strategic partnership ambitions.

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

Officer contact: Holly Rae on 0161 474 3014 or email: holly.rae@stockport.gov.uk

The Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) providing an update on the strategic approach in responding to the review of the medium-term financial plan. This followed on from the report presented at the Cabinet meeting on 28 September 2022 and scrutiny committees during October. In particular, it included updated proposals within the appendix for scrutiny comment ahead of the Budget Council Meeting in February.

The report outlined the budget proposals being considered by the Cabinet to address financial and demand challenges, enable longer term transformation, and ensure the delivery of shared strategic partnership ambitions.

The Cabinet Member for Health and Adult Social Care (Councillor Keith Holloway) attended the meeting to respond to questions from the Scrutiny Committee.

The following comments were made/ issues raised:-

·         In relation to supporting carers to look after their own health and wellbeing and to care effectively and safely, it was queried whether this included unpaid family carers and how this offer was going to be delivered.

·         In response, it was confirmed that unpaid family carers were a focus of the support offer and arrangements were in place for a carers assessment to guarantee services were able to identify the needs of an unpaid family carer to ensure that they were able to continue to provide those caring responsibilities. The council acknowledged the crucial role of family carers in supporting residents to remain safely and securely in their own homes. Work was underway to understand and develop the support offer to informal carers, particularly around supporting them to access the right information and advice including accessing non-means tested benefits such as attendance allowance.

·         Welcomed the partnership work with the voluntary and community sector to support unpaid carers.

·         Requested that a level of detail in relation to young carers be given as part of the update on the carers review.

·         Welcomed the recharge to Greater Manchester Integrated Care for in house learning disability clients.

·         In relation to the out of area placement review, it was queried how taking a proactive approach and providing more of appropriate care locally in the long term sat alongside this proposal.

·         In response, it was stated that the short term strategy was aimed to reduce costs and improve outcomes and longer term strategy was focussed on creating the environment. It was acknowledged that one of the main issues in adult social care nationally was the lack of suitable housing in local areas. In Stockport there was a shortage in a range of accommodation which had been identified and formed part of future plans which included both a housing and support offer for individuals once placed. The strategy included a long term plan to build a holistic offer for a range of accommodation across Stockport with a mix of tenures and considerations around stimulating the local market and opportunities for individuals to manage their own support. It was noted that there was a number of Stockport residents who were funded to live out of area which had been identified through their reviews as an opportunity to improve the quality of their care by providing it within the borough.

·         It was queried how many children fulfilling a caring role had been identified by the council and how they were supported.

·         In response, it was stated that there was a young carers support service in Stockport through Signpost for Carers which had been operating for a number of years and provided enjoyable opportunities for children and young people away from their caring responsibilities. Based on the 2011 census data it was estimated that there were around 32,000 unpaid carers across Stockport and approximately 2,114 of those were under 25 years old. It was noted that more accurate, up to date data would be available through the 2021 census.

·         In relation to the demand management element of the proposed savings, it was acknowledged that the budget was a huge challenge to the authority and services.

·         It was queried if residents were due to receive minimum care packages as a result of the proposals in order to meet the savings targets and the likelihood of the service meeting the savings required.

·         In response, it was stated that the council were not providing minimum care and continued to fully meet the needs of individuals with carers support needs and who required public funding in line with the financial assessment test. However, there was a number of individuals, partly due to the pandemic and impact that this had on reviews, who were continuing to receive support where it was no longer required. In addition, there had been a focus on the prevention and early intervention offer to support reablement and deliver better outcomes.

RESOLVED – That the report be noted.