Agenda item

Invitees:

Mary Ryan – Head of Adult Services

Councillor Stephen Marshall – Cabinet Member for Social Services

Councillor Jason Hughes – Cabinet Member for Social Services

The Cabinet Member for Social Services introduced the report. The Cabinet Member for Social Services thanked staff for their work and resilience.

The Head of Adult Services presented the report.

The Head of Adult Services felt positive despite increasing pressures. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that there are issues with staffing and so was important to be mindful when delivering services to ensure that the most vulnerable receive help.

The Head of Adult Services highlighted the emphasis on ensuring that people are being kept out of hospital during winter where possible and safe and cared for at home. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that this has been done by using funding to concentrate on carers who support people in the community.

The Head of Adult Services informed the committee about the accreditation that Newport gained as an Older Person City.

Questions:

The committee asked whether there was a date for the development of a regional appointeeship service to begin.

·       The Head of Adult Services informed committee that they had been working closely with Caerphilly and that the appointeeship service is almost self-funding. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that there is also a deputyship that helps ensure that money is used wisely and those who required a deputyship will have been managed by Caerphilly with the next step being the appointeeship. The Head of Adult Services confirmed that they were satisfied with the partnership with Caerphilly and that the scheme needed to grow. The Head of Adult Services explained that there was not a timescale in having a regional service as the work is ongoing. 
 

The committee asked for an explanation of appointeeship and deputyship.

·       The Head of Adult Services explained that an appointeeship was a service supplied by the council to help those who couldn’t manage their own money by giving them allowances and supporting them to manage their own finances. The Head of Adult Services explained that a deputyship dealt with those who had a considerable amount of money to ensure that they are looking after that in the most effective way as a form of safeguarding.

The committee what was being done to address staffing shortages and reduced capacity in home care.

·       The Head of Adult Services informed committee that they had taken part in panel groups that have looked at what could be done at every level. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that Newport outsources its domiciliary care and has been in a good position working with a range of providers. The Head of Adult Services expressed concern for the future as many carers are leaving the profession which is causing the shortage in addition to the need for consistency for cared for people 

The committee queried grants and funding for carers such as grants to assist with driving lessons.

·       The Head of Adult Services confirmed that there is a process for over 18 carers to apply for assistance to help with driving lessons if there was an issue preventing them from a career in care work and can be explored for informal carers.

The committee asked for an explanation for the underspend.

·       The Head of Adult Services informed committee that it was for similar reasons to Children’s Services where there had been funding and grants available during the pandemic. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that they were still looking at how that underspend would be brought forward.

The committee asked how the lack of growth in appointeeship Regional Services would impact on the service going forward.

·       The Head of Adult Services explained that as they had been working in a hybrid model with Caerphilly where they have taken on some of the deputyship work as the waiting list only had a two-person backlog. The Head of Adult Services confirmed that they would continue working with Caerphilly. The Head of Adult Services noted that the larger issue in this area was the direct payment service and allowing people to be able to manage their own care.

The committee asked when the integration of the frailty team would be completed.

·       The Head of Adult Services informed committee that the work in this area started before Covid-19 and then became more hospital based. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that they were now making progress. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that they have considered an IAA hub with the frailty team built in to be able to provide wraparound care attached to frailty. The Head of Adult Services noted that there should be some progress on this by December.
 

The committee asked whether people would be able to arrange their own care and whether the service area would have checks in place?

·       The Head of Adult Services explained that where there is a care need, there would initially be discussions on whether care could be provided by family with financial assistance before considering a care agency. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that this arrangement was not available in all areas of Wales as some areas don’t allow payment to go to family members and there was an aim at ensuring a fair and equitable service payment across the nation. The Head of Adult Services noted that the payment wouldn’t be stand alone and that there would consistent reviews.

The committee asked for reassurance and an update about plans for the Day Opportunities Development of Outreach Service.

·       The Head of Adult Services informed committee that during the pandemic, many centres closed which enabled work to be done to consider the provision was aligned with service user requirements. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that they had reviewed the systems and implemented a hybrid model.

The committee asked for assurance that they were operating under DOLS until the about the Liberty Protection Safeguards were implemented. 

·       The Head of Adult Services confirmed this noted that the change to LPS would occur within a few years. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that they have used the time to ensure up to date training in the Mental Capacity Act. The Head of Adult Services offered to arrange a session for committee on the Mental Capacity Act and differences between DOLS and LPS. The committee questioned the stagnation shown in item 1 regarding Early Intervention and Prevention. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that pressures on the workforce had lowered the opportunities for development.

The committee asked how effective Home First had been at increasing hospital discharge from hospitals.

·       The Head of Adult Services highlighted that the Home First model is used prior to hospital admission ensure that people have appropriate care and only those who are medically unwell are in hospital. The Head of Adult Services confirmed that they could provide the committee with the information and statistics from a Newport perspective.

The committee asked about the impact of stagnation in the regional appointeeship service and whether current recruitment would improve the outcome.

·       The Head of Adult Services informed committee that the impact was at a manageable level but there were plans to move on it as it will become full. The Head of Adult Services confirmed that they had supported those within the service where they could increase capacity elsewhere... The Head of Adult Services assured committee that there had been improvements since the report was written, as well as a movement of resources to support the appointeeship team.

The committee asked for clarity regarding the new Welsh Government framework and the inconsistency with the RAG markings.

·       The Head of Adult Services explained that the green percentage was due to the area having done everything they could making it effectively completed on their end. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that there would be changes and noted that maybe more of an explanation within the report was necessary.

The committee highlighted the repetition of certain areas such as the implementation of LPS within the report.

·       The Head of Adult Services explained that objectives within major projects can fall under different areas but agreed that they could all be consolidated for clarity. The Cabinet Member for Social Services asked that if Members were aware of any unpaid carers to let the department know to ensure that they get the amount they are entitled to.

The committee highlighted that staffing was an overarching issue and asked whether anything was being done to address this on a Welsh Government or UK level.

·       The Head of Adult Services informed committee that there were local, regional, and national task forces looking at this. The Head of Adult Services highlighted that there had been an implementation of a significant fee uplift towards the commissioner services and residential nursing care. The Head of Adult Services noted the previous focus on value for money versus the current focus on ensuring that needs are met for residents and the necessity of being able run an effective, fair, and meaningful service. The Head of Adult Services highlighted the focus on trying to attract and retain staff by looking at career paths and other ongoing projects.

The committee asked what the impact would staffing issues from this year have going forward.

·       The Head of Adult Services informed committee that if there was not enough care in the community, there would be a rise in the need for residential care at a cost to the council. The Head of Adult Services informed committee that there was a worry around the development of direct payments and whether people would need to come to the council for care packages. The Head of Adult Services highlighted that people would stay in hospitals for longer than they need to if these issues occurred.

The committee asked for an update on the project supporting young carers.

·       The Strategic Director confirmed to the committee that the projects have been going well including the launch of the Young Carers Identity Card. The Strategic Director highlighted that there had been more funding received for Families First as well as poor children’s services.

The committee asked what impact the increase in contacts received by adult services would have. 

·       The Head of Adult Services highlighted that the data included signposting people and was not necessarily the total number of people taken on. The Head of Adult Services noted that no data was collected from 2019 to 2020.

The committee thanked the invitees for their attendance and asked them to leave the meeting.