Agenda item

(a)       That the overall assessment that we are well placed in preparing for the implementation of the Act; and

(b)       That the Committee receive regular updates about implementing the Act and gives further consideration to how elected Members can support the core principles and key messages of the Act.

The Chief Officer introduced an update on the fundamental changes in the policy and legislative framework which underpinned the Council’s work to prepare for implementation of the Social Services and Wellbeing (Wales) Act from 6 April 2016.  The legislation was important not only to Social Services but also to wider services and its extensive scope included new responsibilities for councils and health boards on transforming service delivery.  The legislation would be implemented through a phased approach and would change expectations between service providers and service users by providing support at an earlier stage to encourage longer independent living.

The Senior Manager: Commissioning and Performance said that the Council was well placed to prepare for the incoming Act and detailed the key principles, as set out in the report, to be implemented on completion of the formal consultations.  These were linked to the ‘What Matters’ assessment, the development of the Single Point of Access (SPOA) system and the new regional Dewis portal.  To explain more about the aim of the Act, the Committee was shown a brief animation clip entitled ‘What matters to you - matters to us’ available on the Social Services Improvement Agency (SSIA) website.

Although some details were still awaited from the Welsh Government (WG), the Council had already begun preparations through a range of training sessions aimed at raising basic awareness with staff with more targeted training for practitioners.  The Workforce Development Manager encouraged Members to access details on the Act via the Care Council for Wales information and learning hub, of which a link would be made available.  She spoke about the Council’s involvement in the SSIA pilot initiative on outcome focussed training and the rollout of nationally commissioned training modules in February 2016.

The Occupational Therapist Senior Practitioner from the First Contact and Intake team delivered a presentation on actions which had been taken to address the increase in referral rates and decreased resources.  She described improvements to the team structure and the trialling of integrated assessment documentation which had been well received, and gave example case studies where the team had worked with individuals to identify and resolve underlying issues to achieve the outcomes expressed by those individuals.

The Information Officer provided details on the Dewis portal which offered a range of information on the requirements of the Act and shared copies of newsletters on the system and SPOA.  The Dewis portal had been live since September 2015 and would be publicly launched in February 2016 to coincide with further information on the Act.  A link to the Dewis Cymru website was included in the report and Members were offered the opportunity for a practical demonstration after the meeting.

Whilst Councillor Dave Mackie welcomed the layout of the report in clarifying the 11 key proposed changes from the Act, he pointed out that links to background documents should be accessible to allow proper consideration.  He felt that presentations should be based on information already given to Members rather than new information, and that the length of time allocated should allow for Members to scrutinise and raise questions.

In acknowledgement, the Chief Officer stressed the importance of presenting different elements of information on this highly complex legislation, especially as Member training on the new Act had not been well attended.  In response to comments on the initial enquiry form used for the What Matters assessment, it was explained that this information was input on the PARIS system and had been printed for Members to view.

It was explained by the Facilitator that a longer presentation had been agreed to accommodate the range of the information needed to equip Members ahead of the implementation of the Act.

Councillor Christine Jones felt that the information had been well presented and summarised as much as possible in anticipation of the Act which was extremely comprehensive, however a further session could be arranged if Members wished.  On the content of the presentation, she pointed out that information on Dewis had been included in the report and that SPOA had previously been reported to the Committee.

In response to comments on accessing electronic links to embedded documents, Councillor Veronica Gay asked if IT colleagues could be requested to resolve this on Members’ iPads.  The Facilitator agreed to pass on the comments made as the new report template was still being piloted.

Councillor Hilary McGuill raised concerns about the need for cross-county links and the commitment to respond promptly to crisis situations.  The Chief Officer referred to the separation of systems between England and Wales and the need for continued communications on the co-ordination of work with Cheshire West.  Councillor McGuill also suggested that the Llys Eleanor gymnasium could be utilised by voluntary organisations to conduct sessions.

In response to concerns about the initial assessment process, the Senior Manager: Integrated Services/Lead Adults gave assurance that rather than just a tick-box exercise, skilled officers carried out this conversation by telephone or in person, as demonstrated in the example case study.  In response to positive comments on the effectiveness of the Crisis Intervention Team, officers referred to the integration of the team which was based alongside SPOA which allowed for risks to be identified and the appropriate support to be deployed.  On links with the voluntary sector, the Flintshire Local Voluntary Council (FLVC) Co-ordinator, who had been seconded to the Crisis Team, explained more about this joint working including signposting to other organisations to help people live independently.  A Red Cross representative within the Reablement Team was also able to work with individuals, thus maximising Occupational Therapist resources.

Councillor Hilary Isherwood felt that there should be a commitment from WG to provide funding to support the new legislation and that there should be education from a young age to encourage everyone to take ownership of their own health, to adopt a balanced healthy lifestyle and to engage with communities on helping older residents.  She also felt that the Council could change its way of working to adapt to the needs of older residents, for example within the Housing service, for adaptations to be in place within properties at the start of the process.

Councillor Jones gave assurance that work on the Strategic Housing and Regeneration Programme included the provision of homes for the future.  She added that the Council worked alongside the education and health sector on various strands of the Health and Wellbeing Strategy.

The Chief Officer said that although some progress had been made on funding for social care, there were still significant pressures, including those arising from the Act, which demonstrated the need to push for continued funding.

Councillor McGuill reported a problem with the identification of postcodes on the Dewis system, an issue which had previously been raised.

Councillor Mike Lowe thanked officers for the informative presentation and asked about signposting of information.  Officers replied that the Care Council for Wales website contained useful information for the public and practitioners and would be promoted through an advertising campaign, although traditional means of communication could be also be used to access information.  On referrals, Members were advised that GPs were able to email details directly to SPOA.

RESOLVED:

(a)       That the overall assessment that we are well placed in preparing for the implementation of the Act; and

(b)       That the Committee receive regular updates about implementing the Act and gives further consideration to how elected Members can support the core principles and key messages of the Act.