Agenda item
Adult Social Care
The Director of Environment and Neighbourhood Services will attend the meeting to present to Members current budget issues facing the service.
Minutes:
The Director of Adult Social Services, Alison Elliott, gave a presentation highlighting the current budget position and the pressures the budget was facing. The service was organised into six divisions with a net budget of £90.75m, 375 permanent FTE members of staff and 54 vacancies. She explained that there was currently a £500,000 overspend which was due to historical pressures from children’s transition to adulthood and since April, a transition service had been developed to prepare children with disabilities from the age of 14 to reduce demand. A savings target of £250,000 had been given to each Head of Service and savings were being achieved to date by a one off Secretary of State ruling which had helped reduce pressures as well as the freezing of the learning and development budget. A detailed breakdown of the budget for each service area was provided and it was highlighted that an increase in senior management costs appeared on the budget due to all senior management costs being brought into one budget line. Additionally it was noted that two senior manager posts were interim due to their roles not being required in the future. Alison Elliott informed the Committee that £13.42m savings had been made to date which was largely due to efficiencies in the procuring of services and the ability to have greater buying power through the West London Alliance.
The Chair reminded members of the public of the conduct that should be adhered to at a public meeting of the Council.
The Director of Adult Social Services explained that the way services were delivered had been transformed with a more personalised approach to allow greater choice and control. It was noted that savings continued to be made through the One Council programme as well as through efficiencies in procuring services. The reablement service had been designed to help residents regain their independence and reduce their reliance of services and allow greater control over their lives. Alison Elliott highlighted that there had been a slight increase in numbers for residential care however the cost per unit had been reduced. This was similar across various services provided and was due to the ability to procure services at a lower cost, however there were concerns that this would not be sustainable in the future.
The Director of Adult Social Services highlighted that the budget pressures going forward included; the ability to commission services at a lower rate, increase in demand and the ability to collect income from increased demand on service use. These pressures were being faced in a growing population and complexity with the recognised need to sustain reduced care costs.
During discussion it was explained that the services currently provided did not focus on prevention or early intervention due to the eligibility threshold being set at substantial and critical need. Through working with partners such as the NHS and with the public health service transferring to local Councils in April 2013, early intervention could be developed and an enhanced realblement pilot started last week. This pilot is to help elderly people with complex needs regain independence. . It was clarified that non staff costs related to services that were procured opposed to staff costs which were for occupational therapists etc. It was explained that the Council was hoping to implement a living wage to Brent and discussions with contractors were taking place. Currently £13 per hour on average was paid to providers but it was expected that to provide staff with the living wage could cost the Council up to £5m however work was on-going with providers to find a solution. It was explained that the reliance on agency staff had been reduced due to permanent posts being recruited and a projected agency spend of £1.9m in 2012/13 compared to £4.5m in 2010/11. Currently one consultant was employed although this was for the West London Alliance and was recharged to them. It was explained that the indirect costs had been reduced due to the number of buildings reducing however an increase was expected due to the increase in fuel costs etc. It was noted that the domiciliary care numbers had reduced due to the reablement services promoting independence. Members queried how costs compared to other Councils. It was explained that the costs would be very similar across West London Boroughs due to the buying power enabled through the West London Alliance however information for other boroughs was not available. The Director of Adult Social Services concluded that she was confident that the budget for this year would come in on target. The team remained committed to delivering the best services for Brent despite a shrinking budget and recognised the need to think and deliver services differently to protect the most vulnerable.
RESOLVED:-
that the presentation be noted