Agenda item

(a)       That the portfolio budget options be noted, with resilience levels for the Older People’s Services to be changed from Green to Amber; and

(b)       That the portfolio financial pressures be noted.

The Chief Executive introduced the report to set out the current financial forecast position for 2018/19 and seek views on Stage 1 of the Council Fund revenue budget proposals for the Social Services portfolio.  Proposals for other portfolios would be considered by the respective Overview & Scrutiny Committees prior to submission to Cabinet in November/December.  As part of the staged approach to the budget, Members had been advised that the £11.7m gap (currently projected) did not include any modelling for levels of Council Tax.

The Chief Executive did not wish to speculate on the national picture until the forthcoming announcement on the Provisional Local Government Settlement.  It was not known whether any cash reduction to funding would include any reductions in specific grants, and whether additional funding for social care would apply.  It was important to keep under review financial pressures for the portfolio.  Members were encouraged to scrutinise the resilience statements which showed the current state of risk with services.

The Chief Officer (Social Services) gave an overview of the resilience statements.  A number of service areas had been risk-assessed as ‘Amber’ and pressures in the care sector were affecting demand on services.  Increased referrals for safeguarding, and pressures on frontline teams, had never been greater.

The Finance Manager provided information on actions taken to reduce the specific portfolio pressures along with the impact of changes in legislation and eligibility criteria.  Efficiency options for the portfolio totalled £0.450m and included an increase in the domiciliary care charging cap which had been agreed annually with Welsh Government (WG).

In response to a question from the Chair, the Finance Manager advised that emerging pressures reported to Cabinet did not include social care pressures such as out of county placements (approximately £0.700m) which were subject to ongoing review.

Councillor Hilary McGuill questioned the accuracy of projected increases in inflation and was informed that these were based on the latest national intelligence.

In advising the budget timeline for 2018/19, the Finance Manager (Corporate Accounting & Systems) said that detailed analysis of the outcomes from the provisional settlement would determine outcomes linked to the Medium Term Financial Strategy.

The Chief Executive spoke about the need for forward planning to achieve many of the efficiency options.  On specific pressures, although the commitment by WG to protect the Supporting People grant was welcomed, a £0.387m pressure still remained for core services that were not eligible for grant support.  Three areas for negotiation were a strong case to be made for the increase in independent sector fees to be met nationally; revenue from the Intermediate Care Fund to be ring-fenced; and an exemption from the staged increase to domiciliary care charges to maximise income in 2018/19.

The Chief Officer reported that over £8m of savings had been achieved in the portfolio over the past five years - which equated to 13% of the budget - and that this impact was reflected in the risk ratings of those services.

The Chair questioned whether resilience levels for Older People’s Services should be ranked as Red to reflect risks from the predicted rise in the older population and higher demand for social care residential placements.  She felt that this change would also strengthen the case for additional funding.  The Chief Executive said that the resilience statements were an assessment of the current position and were subject to change.  He suggested that the level could be changed to Amber to acknowledge that the service was able to meet demand at present, but could be exposed to greater risk the following year.  The Chief Officer was in agreement and that this should be monitored over six months.

Councillor Bernie Attridge gave a reminder of the commitment by Cabinet to protect the three care homes owned by the Council and to look at extending one of those facilities to meet demand.

Following comments from Councillor Dave Mackie, the Chief Executive said that Amber risk ratings reflected services that were currently deliverable.  However, if the areas of national budget negotiation did not lead to change and any of these budgets had to be re-reviewed then the assessed risk levels for a number of service areas could change to Red.

Councillor McGuill cited Mental Health, Early Years and Re-ablement Services as areas where investment would provide future savings in other sectors.  She asked whether the proposed expansion of Marleyfield care home was at the expense of an extra care facility in Buckley.  Councillor Attridge said that this was not the case as Buckley had been recognised as the location for the next extra care facility.

In response to further comments on supporting older people, the Chief Officer referred to work with providers and voluntary organisations as part of the Ageing Well agenda and Councillor Christine Jones spoke about work under the Wellbeing Strategy.  She agreed to pass on the suggestion for the Older Person’s Day event to be held in other parts of the county.

On the cost of care per week in Flintshire County Council homes, extra care and independent sector care homes, the Senior Manager advised that the costs were currently:-

-       Independent Sector                                  £653

-       Flintshire County Council homes          £641

-       Extra Care                                                   £430

When asked by Councillor Kevin Hughes about the impact of budget pressures, the Chief Officer said that high standards of care were maintained and he referred to the ‘Progress for Providers’ training initiative and ‘Escalating Concerns’ process to address specific concerns about care provision.  He spoke about the need for WG to recognise that support was needed to enable the Council to be fair with care providers.

During discussion on extra care provision, the Chief Executive spoke about changes to funding subsidies which had resulted in a budget pressure for the Council.

To benefit newer Council Members, it was agreed that a future meeting of the Committee would be held in one of the County’s extra care facilities.

RESOLVED:

(a)       That the portfolio budget options be noted, with resilience levels for the Older People’s Services to be changed from Green to Amber; and

(b)       That the portfolio financial pressures be noted.