Issue - meetings

As detailed in the recommendations.

Councillor Jones introduced the Pooled Budget Agreement for Care Home Accommodation for Older People 2019-2020 report which advised on the proposed regional approach to fulfilling the authority’s legal requirements in relation to the establishment and maintenance of a regional pooled fund.  This was in line with the duties imposed by the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 (“the 2014 Act”) and The Partnership Arrangements (Wales) Regulations 2015 (“the 2015 regulations”).

                        The Chief Officer (Social Services) explained that a decision was required to endorse the regional approach to establishing a non-risk sharing pooled fund, to be hosted by Denbighshire County Council on behalf of the six North Wales Councils and Besti Cadwaladr University Health Board, insofar as regional spend on care home accommodation functions for older people was concerned.

                        There would be no delegation of functions involved which meant that all partners would retain full individual responsibility for fulfilling their statutory duties insofar as commissioning and provision of care home accommodation services was concerned.  Each partner would continue to be solely responsible for their own budgets and expenditure.

RESOLVED:

(a)       That the progress made regionally in meeting the Part 9 requirements of the 2014 Act which includes a legal requirement to establish a regional pooled fund for care home accommodation for older people be noted;

(b)       That the establishment of a non-risk sharing pooled fund for care home accommodation for older people, as set out in the report with Denbighshire County Council acting as the Host Authority, be approved, with the arrangements to be effective for the financial year 2019/20; and

(c)        That approval be given to the Council entering into a legal agreement between Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board and the six local authorities across North Wales, regulating the establishment, operation and governance arrangements in respect of the pooled fund for a period of 3 years.