Issue - meetings

This report sets out proposals for working with the London Borough of Harrow for the provision of telecare services for vulnerable people and their carers and seeks approval to enter into an Inter Authority Agreement (Partnership) for provision of the service.

Cabinet RESOLVED:

(1)    To approve an exemption from the usual tendering requirements set in the Contract Standing Orders 84 for good operational and financial reasons.

(2)    To approve the creation of an Inter Authority Agreement (“the IAA”) that implements co-operation for the provision of telecare for vulnerable people and their carers for three years with an option to extend for a further 1+1 years with Harrow Council.

(3)    To delegate authority to the Corporate Director, Services Reform and Strategy to finalise the terms of the IAA, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, Public Health and Leisure and Director of Law and Corporate Director Finance and Resources.

Eligible for call-in: Yes

Deadline for submission of call-in: 6pm on Tuesday 14 April 2026

Councillor Nerva (Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, Public Health & Leisure) introduced a report from the Corporate Director Service Reform & Strategy seeking approval to enter into an Inter Authority Agreement (Partnership) with Harrow Council for the provision of telecare services for vulnerable people and their carers.

In presenting the report, Councillor Nerva began by highlighting the importance of independence for residents, with many, including those with significant care needs, valuing the local authority and NHS services that enabled them to maximise their independence and control in a home setting. He emphasised that, with the improvements in technology being seen, the Council had an opportunity to support residents’ independence in a better and more responsive way, which the proposals outlined sought to do by maintaining and developing services that used vital assistive technology to help older people and people of younger working age with disabilities to live safely and independently in the home for as long as they could.

In outlining the service, Councillor Nerva advised that assistive technology was becoming a much wider and more flexible offer that could improve safety, provide reassurance, and help people stay well in the comfort of their own homes. He emphasised that by continuing to work in partnership with Harrow, the Council could build on existing arrangements, avoid disruption to residents who relied on these services, and benefit from a more joined up approach leading to greater reliability, better continuity of service and economies of scale achieved through working with an established partner.

In highlighting that the local authority saw telecare not only as a service available for people with funded care but as a first line offer to all residents who wished to take up the telecare offer, Councillor Nerva confirmed that the contract was being developed to enable the Council to get the best from new opportunities in assistive technology and would deliver a forward-looking service that supported independence and provided strong foundations for the future.

In welcoming the work being done in this area, which members felt utilised the opportunities arising from digital advancements in technology and reflected the Council’s commitments around prevention and working in neighbourhoods, Cabinet RESOLVED, having also noted the need to amend recommendation 2.3 the report to reflect the phrasing of the delegation to ‘in consultation with the Cabinet Member’:

(1)       To approve an exemption from the usual tendering requirements set out in the Contract Standing Orders 84 for good operational and financial reasons:

(2)       To approve the creation of an Inter Authority Agreement (“the IAA”) that implemented co-operation for the provision of telecare for vulnerable people and their carers for three years with an option to extend for a further 1 + 1 years with Harrow Council.

(3)    To delegate authority to the Corporate Director Service Reform and Strategy to finalise the terms of the IAA in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, Public Health and Leisure, the Director of Law and the Corporate Director Finance and Resources.