Agenda, decisions and minutes

No declarations of interest were made. 

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 11 April 2013.

That the minutes be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.          

The minutes of the meeting held on 11 April 2013 had been circulated to Members with the agenda. 

Matters Arising

            In response to a query from Councillor H.J. McGuill about the breakdown of calls received by the Emergency Duty Team, the Environment and Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Facilitator indicated that details of the calls listed as ‘other’ had been circulated to Members by email earlier that day.  She added that a breakdown of calls for children and adults and whether calls were as a result of patients being discharged from hospital was being collated and would be circulated to Members when the information was available. 

            Councillor McGuill also asked for confirmation that an update on the ‘man in the van’ pilot would be provided in the quarterly performance report.  The Partnership Manager Health Social Care and Wellbeing Strategy explained that it would be referenced in the quarter 4 information but that full analysis would be included in the quarter 1 report.   

            The Chair indicated that a written response had also been provided to Members on performance indicator SCY/001a (the percentage change in the average number of hours of suitable education, training or employment children and young people receive while within the youth justice system by children and young people of statutory school age).  She also explained that she had asked that Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) provide an update on enhanced care when they attend the meeting scheduled for 20 June 2013.  The Director of Community Services explained that Partnership Manager Health Social Care and Wellbeing Strategy had been in discussions about a North West Flintshire Enhanced Care Service and some positive developments had been made but that some issues were still outstanding.  In response to a query from Councillor McGuill about how much BCUHB had put aside for the project in Flintshire, Partnership Manager Health Social Care and Wellbeing Strategy said that she had been advised that approximately £300,000 had been put aside for each locality.  The Director added that this was the general award across North Wales. 

RESOLVED:

That the minutes be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.          

(a)       That the contribution and provision of health and social care services by third sector organisations across Flintshire is noted;

(b)       That Flintshire Local Voluntary Council (FLVC) provide an annual overview of third sector health and social care service provision to the Committee; and

(c)        That FLVC and Flintshire County Council engage in discussions to consider developing processes regarding access to services provided by the third sector. 

The Chair introduced Kate Newman, the Health and Social Care Facilitator for the Flintshire Local Voluntary Council (FLVC), to the Committee.  

Ms. Newman introduced the report to update the Committee, demonstrate the range of health and social care services in Flintshire provided by third sector organisations and to inform Committee of third sector involvement in commissioning of health and social care services.  A handout was circulated to Members which provided details of the third sector organisations in Flintshire and the types of services that they provided. 

Ms. Newman detailed the background to the report and explained that there were approximately 20 third sector organisations in Flintshire commissioned by Flintshire County Council and/or Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) to deliver health and social care services.  It was reported that there was an increasing expectation on public and third sector organisations to deliver more with less, thus requiring effective pooling of existing resources.  Locally based third sector organisations were fundamental to the provision of a range of accessible and appropriate services to enable individuals to maintain independence within the community.  A small number of third sector organisations had effective working links and provided services which supported both the Flintshire County Council re-ablement team and Crisis Intervention team.  This joint working was crucial to enable individuals to remain at home, avoiding nursing care or hospital admission.  Ms. Newman provided details of case studies of the support which had been provided by the third sector organisations to assist individuals and their families.  The third sector provision of health and social services in Flintshire also contributed to the effective implementation and delivery of strategic plans such as Flintshire Carer’s Strategy, Together for Mental Health and Families First. 

Councillor D.I. Mackie raised concern about the recommendation 4.02 as the recommendation from the FLVC was not contained in the report.  Ms. Newman said that it was not about FLVC being involved in commissioning of the service but was about planning what the service might look like.  This could include developing a process on how to access third sector organisations in terms of contributing to the whole process.  The Chair suggested that this part of the recommendation be removed. 

Councillor H.J. McGuill welcomed the work of the third sector organisations and asked whether links to the FLVC were publicised as she felt that members of the public who were not aware of the existence of the FLVC would not be able to access the advice they provided.  Ms. Newman responded that a web-based health and social care directory had been developed which was on the FLVC website.  This listed the services available along with an overview of the service and contact details.  Councillor McGuill queried whether there were links on the Flintshire County Council and health care websites.  Ms. Newman explained that a link was included where possible but added that it was an ongoing process.  The Director said that the Flintshire County Council website was being revised and that he would check whether a link  ...  view the full minutes text for item 87.

That the report as an overview of the administration and outcomes of the Social Services representations and complaints procedure be accepted.      

The Complaints Officer introduced the report to provide Members with information on the compliments, representations and complaints received by Adult and Children Social Services for the year April 2012 to March 2013. 

He provided a detailed breakdown and explained that 51 complaints for Adult Social Services were received in the year which was a significant decrease compared to 89 received during 2011-12 and 76 during 2010-11.  Information was provided on the number of complaints which progressed to Stage 2 of the procedure and the Complaints Officer added that one complaint was considered at a Stage 3 Panel Hearing.  Social Services for Adults received 140 compliments in the year 2012-13 and details of the work areas which received the compliments were reported.   Tables in the report provided a breakdown of the services which had been complained about or complimented on and further details were reported of the complaints and the methods used to resolve them.  For Children’s Social Services, 57 complaints were received which was a slight increase on the previous years.  A breakdown of the services which had been complained about or complimented on were reported and further information was shown on how the complaints had been resolved.  The service also recorded that 57 compliments had been received from families and the Courts with an additional 10 compliments relating to the work of the Youth Justice Service. 

Councillor H.J. McGuill welcomed the reduction in the number of complaints for Adult Social Services and praised the work of Susie Lunt, Service Manager Intake and Reablement and the team for listening and acting on the complaints received to improve the service.  She raised concern at complaints which were received following patients being discharged from hospital and in response, the Partnership Manager Health Social Care and Wellbeing Strategy said that structures were in place and due to lessons learned from previous complaints, they were now more robust.  She added that it was important that the health service monitored the element of the report that affected them.  The Director of Community Services said that if the complaints were only about health issues then they would not be accepted under the authority’s procedures.  Councillor McGuill said that she would like to see if an element of complaints were about hospital discharges. 

Councillor P. Shotton queried whether the half day workshop run by the Complaints Officer was having a positive effect.  He also asked who the independent Investigating Officers for Stage 2 complaints were.  In response the Complaints Officer advised that they had a social care background and would be selected from a shared pool of resources across North Wales. 

Councillor M. Bateman felt that it would be useful to have a breakdown of the number of service users to compare to the number of complaints or compliments received.  The Complaints Officer confirmed that he could provide this information in future reports.  The Chair felt that the small number of complaints was a credit to the staff. 

RESOLVED:

That the report as an overview  ...  view the full minutes text for item 88.

That a report and the business case be submitted to the next meeting of the Committee for consideration.            

The Head of Social Services for Adults introduced a report to describe the proposal to transform the service delivery of Double Click from a Social Services run work-scheme to a Social Enterprise working in partnership with Flintshire County Council as a new business.  He introduced Rhian Evans, the Mental Health Support Service Manager, to the Committee. 

The Head of Social Services for Adults detailed the background to the report, explained why the Social Enterprise Model had been chosen, highlighted the changes for the Service and detailed the impacts on staff, service users and the local authority. 

Councillor D.I. Mackie raised concern that there was no business case available to Scrutiny and said that he would not be able to support the recommendation without the business case.  He was also concerned that the report did not contain more detail of what the future held and of the future financial implications on the authority. 

The Mental Health Support Service Manager explained that a draft business case was in place and that advice and input had been sought from the Senior Business Advisor.  The Head of Social Services for Adults said that the future aspirations would include offering more training places and added that he expected the cost of the Business Manager to be reviewed yearly and expected the funding required for this to reduce over initial years.  The Chair suggested that the wording of the recommendation be amended to allow the Committee to consider the Business Case before supporting the recommendation that Cabinet progress the issue. 

Councillor D. Evans queried whether the service, which had been established for over ten years, had made a profit during that time.  The Mental Health Support Service Manager explained that it had not been a business during that period so had not made a great deal of money but that income had increased in the past year.  The Chair then suggested that the report and business case be submitted to the next meeting of the Committee for consideration.  The Director of Community Services said that he was grateful for the comments made and added that the business case was about building the business over the next three years. 

RESOLVED:

That a report and the business case be submitted to the next meeting of the Committee for consideration.            

That the report and the achievements of the Transition Team be noted. 

The Head of Social Services for Adults introduced a report to provide the Committee with updated information on the progress of the Transition Teams sited within Disability Services (Adult Social Services).  He detailed the background to the report and explained that the words ‘young person aged 14-15’ in paragraph 3.03 should read ‘young person aged 16’.  This was a report for information and further update reports would be submitted to future meetings of the Committee. 

 The Chair welcomed the informative report and Councillor P. Shotton said that it was important to note the achievements of the Transition Team. 

The Head of Social Services for Children detailed some of the challenges which the young people and the team faced and explained that training had been undertaken. 

RESOLVED:  

That the report and the achievements of the Transition Team be noted. 

(a)       That Members be aware of the legislation coming into force which will significantly change how services are delivered across Wales; and   

(b)       That the Committee request that Cabinet debates the implications of the Social Services and Well-Being (Wales) Bill on Flintshire County Council and in particular the financial impact. 

The Director of Community Services introduced a report to provide an explanatory report, of the Social Services and Well-Being (Wales) Bill.  He detailed the background to the report and highlighted the key proposed changes and implications and provided details of what the Bill would not include. 

The Chair referred to the recommendation at paragraph 4.00 and asked that an additional recommendation be included which would read as follows:-

4.02 – That the Committee request that Cabinet debates the implications of the Social Services and Well-Being (Wales) Bill on Flintshire County Council and in particular the financial impact. 

On being put to the vote, this was agreed.  

            Councillor P. Shotton said that in noting the intention of this bill to integrate and simplify current social care legislation, he felt that more information was required on funding and the cost implications for Flintshire County Council.  Councillor A.I. Dunbar, in praising the tremendous work undertaken by carers and welcoming the key changes for carers, asked when the changes would be implemented.  The Director responded that the changes to carer’s rights and responsibilities were welcomed but added that it was expected that they would not be put in place until 2016.  The Chair said that the implications of the bill had always been to have social services working more closely with health.  The Director referred to the third bullet point on page 39 where it was reported that, as part of the Bill, there would be extended duties on social services and their partners to collaborate in the delivery of integrated services, including the use of pooled budgets, partnership working and working with others to reduce bureaucracy.  

            In response to a query from Councillor H.G. Roberts for more information of what was contained in the Bill, the Director explained that the document, which was over 1,000 pages, was available electronically.  He confirmed that there were no formal proposals to merge health and social services but it was anticipated that the services would be more integrated. 

RESOLVED:

(a)       That Members be aware of the legislation coming into force which will significantly change how services are delivered across Wales; and   

(b)   That the Committee request that Cabinet debates the implications of the Social Services and Well-Being (Wales) Bill on Flintshire County Council and in particular the financial impact. 

That the Forward Work Programme be approved subject to the inclusion of:-

(i)         a report on the Business Case for Double Click to the 20 June 2013 meeting;

(ii)        a report on Adult Safeguarding to the 25 July 2013 meeting; and

(iii)       a presentation by NEWCIS to a future meeting of the Committee.  

The Environment and Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Facilitator introduced the report to consider the Forward Work Programme of the Committee. 

The Facilitator explained that a joint meeting with Lifelong Learning Overview and Scrutiny Committee was due to take place on Tuesday, 11 June 2013.  She also detailed the items which were due to be considered at the meeting scheduled for 20 June 2013 and advised Members that a report on the Business Case for Double Click which had been requested during earlier discussions, would also be submitted to the meeting. 

Details were also provided of the items which were to be submitted to the meeting scheduled for 25 July 2013 and the Facilitator advised that the Director of Community Services had asked that a report on Adult Safeguarding be considered at that meeting.  The Chair also asked if a presentation from North East Wales Carers Information Service (NEWCIS) could be made to a future meeting.    

The Facilitator advised that a Forward Work Programme Planning Sessions had been arranged for 4 July 2013 for Members to have input into the items to be considered by the Committee over the next few months. 

RESOLVED:

That the Forward Work Programme be approved subject to the inclusion of:-

(i)         a report on the Business Case for Double Click to the 20 June 2013 meeting;

(ii)        a report on Adult Safeguarding to the 25 July 2013 meeting; and

(iii)       a presentation by NEWCIS to a future meeting of the Committee.  

There was one member of the press and no members of the public in attendance.