Agenda item

(a)     That the full set of immediate strategic priorities for recovery of the portfolio as set out in the report be agreed, together with the risk analysis and mitigating actions both live and planned; and

(b)     That a forward work programme for the Committee be rebuilt for the remainder of the 2020/21 Council year with recovery planning at its core.

The Chief Executive presented a report to provide the Committee with oversight of recovery planning for its portfolio areas as part of the strategy for the resumption of full democratic governance.  Feedback from each of the Overview & Scrutiny committees on the risk registers, recovery priorities and revised performance indicator targets for their respective areas would be reported to Cabinet prior to publication of a full Recovery Strategy.

A presentation showing the handover from response to recovery covered the following points:

·         Recommendations from Cabinet

·         Objectives of the Recovery Strategy

·         Response Objectives

·         Examples of local achievements in Response

·         Recovery - handover arrangements

·         Regional and Local Recovery Structures

·         Recovery Objectives - Services

·         Recovery Activities

·         Community Recovery

·         Council Plan and Performance

·         Democratic Governance of Recovery

Amongst the key achievements during the response phase was the distribution of personal protective equipment, thanks to the efforts of Vanessa Johnson, Steve Featherstone and their team.  On Community Recovery, reports on collaborative work on Inequalities, Children and Young People and Mental Health and Well-being would be brought back to the Committee for consideration.  On performance, whilst it had not been possible to adopt the Council Plan for 2020/21 due to the emergency situation, work had continued on the rolling Plan to extract key priorities for adoption to support recovery.  Overview & Scrutiny committees were being asked to rebuild their forward work programmes for the remainder of the 2020/21 year with a specific focus on recovery planning to support the restoration of full democratic governance.

In response to a question from the Chair on fostering and adoption services, the Senior Manager: Children gave assurance of continued work and investment in those services which formed part of the core business for the portfolio.

Councillor Gladys Healey thanked the Chief Executive and officer team for their work.  In response to a question, officers provided information on the continuation of services for young carers and the initiative to develop an ID card for priority access to services as part of their role.

The Chief Officer (Social Services) gave a presentation on the risk register for the service portfolio which covered the following:

·         Social Services Risks

·         Financial

·         Workforce

·         External Regulation

·         Adult Services

·         Children’s Services

·         Adult and Children’s Services

The overall risk position was positive with a reduction in the number of red risks since June and an increase in the number of risks that were decreasing or closed.  Whilst spend on out of county placements remained a priority area, joint working with partners and the development of alternative solutions had helped to reduce spend during the period.  Some risks were identified as key to recovery, such as meeting the needs of clients discharged from hospital which showed an improved trend as hospital discharges were now being processed effectively by colleagues in Health.  In Children’s Services, the team continued to work with Education to support those impacted by Adverse Childhood Experiences which remained a red risk, however the reduction in safeguarding referrals for children was noted.

The Chief Executive suggested that Members consider risks of ongoing concern and how best to report them to the Committee to inform the forward work programme.

The Chief Officer and Senior Managers provided an overview of the immediate strategic priorities for recovery which were recommended for inclusion in the Recovery Strategy.  These included plans to extend provision of direct domiciliary care and improving the accommodation offer for care leavers by joint working with Housing colleagues.

In response to a comment by Councillor Hinds, officers spoke about the continuation of the Mockingbird project and a new initiative to identify future housing demand to support the transition of care leavers into communities.

As requested by the Chair, the Senior Manager: Safeguarding and Commissioning provided an update on testing at care homes in Flintshire and the process for allowing visitors which followed national guidance.  She said that regular multi-agency meetings with care providers were well-attended and effective in sharing information and best practice.  She went on to provide details of the task group on the transformation project to develop respite facilities at individual care homes in response to a question from Councillor Hinds.

The Committee was asked to support the recommendations including the immediate recovery priorities identified in the report, alongside agreeing with the risk analysis and mitigating actions.  These were moved by Councillor Wisinger and seconded by Councillor Gladys Healey.

RESOLVED:

(a)     That the full set of immediate strategic priorities for recovery of the portfolio as set out in the report be agreed, together with the risk analysis and mitigating actions both live and planned; and

(b)     That a forward work programme for the Committee be rebuilt for the remainder of the 2020/21 Council year with recovery planning at its core.