Agenda item

·        To receive a presentation by CSSIW

·        To present the response of the Statutory Director of Social Services.

The performance review letter of the Care and Social Services Inspectorate Wales (CSSIW) in relation to the Isle of Anglesey County Council’s Social Services was presented for the Committee’s consideration along with the Authority’s responsive Action Plan. The letter summarised the outcome of the Inspectorate’s inspection, engagement and performance review activity with regard to Anglesey’s Social Services during 2016/17.

Vicky Poole, North Wales Area Director for CSSIW reported on the main points of the letter as follows –

•           The Local Authority has made sustained progress in implementing the Social Services and Well-being Act (SSWBA) with particular focus having been given to developing preventative services that promote independence and community resources.

•           The Adults’ Services transformation programme emphasises supporting people to live independent and fulfilled lives. The single point of access in adult’s services is well established.

•           The Inspectorate noted that there were positive examples of the development of alternative models of delivery in line with the SSWBA which looked at new ways of providing services for people.

•           The Inspectorate noted that partnership working with the BCUHB is ongoing and that positive progress has been made specifically with regard to developing residential services to support people who have dementia and complex needs. Strategic partnership working with BCUHB continues to be a challenge which the local authorities in the region need to address collectively.

•           The Inspectorate also noted that the Authority has plans to recommission domiciliary care on a patch basis and has advised caution in this approach.

•           The local authority is an outlier in its reported performance with respect to the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards and is looking at its data collection processes to better understand the reasons for this. This is an area that CSSIW will be following up in 2017/18.

•           There has been insufficient progress in modernising services for adults with learning disabilities, although it has been noted that more progress has been made in this area this year.

•           Advocacy and access to advocacy is an important part of the SSWBA. Advocacy has been identified by the local authority as an area for development in adults’ services. Children’s Services were seen to make effective use of informal advocacy.

•           During 2016/17, the Inspectorate’s engagement activities across all authorities in Wales focused on two main themes viz.

•           Safeguarding for adults – the Inspectorate was satisfied with how safeguarding arrangements for adults at risk were working in Anglesey and found this to be an area of strength for the local authority

•           Carers – the Inspectorate recognised that there are established third sector services to support carers commissioned by the local authority. The elected member who is the designated carers’ champion is well informed about carers’ needs which is also a strength. However, there is a waiting list for the established young carers’ service – this has been discussed with Children’s Services. Support for carers of people with mental health and substance misuse problems is also an issue across all authorities in Wales. Officers have not consistently given attention to the development of the carers’ strategy and support services.

•           Follow up work with regard to the November, 2016 inspection of Children’s Services is ongoing. The local authority has produced an improvement plan that is being monitored by CSSIW through a structured series of review meetings. CSSIW is also observing key officer meetings and member scrutiny and tracking the experiences of families. The service will be re-inspected to evaluate progress.

•           The letter also summarises the Inspectorate’s inspection, engagement and review plans for the current year.

The Leader and Portfolio Member for Social Services said that the performance review letter reflects progress made by the Local Authority with its Adults’ and Children’s services. Although the principal focus in 2016/17 has been on Children’s Services where the work is ongoing, the authority has not lost sight of Adults’ services and recognises the need to maintain momentum in this area. The Letter serves to highlight the importance of approaching both with an equal commitment to improvement. The Portfolio Member paid particular thanks to the work of the Carers’ Champion who had brought to the fore - the need to give carers a voice both locally and nationally. As the previous Carers’ Champion she had established links with Action for Children which supports services for young carers in Anglesey; the local authority acknowledges that there is further work to be done to improve the young carers’ service and to understand the needs of young carers more fully.

The Assistant Chief Executive (Governance and Business Process Transformation/ Statutory Director of Social Services) confirmed that addressing the needs of young carers is identified as item 12 in the Improvement Priority Plan; options are currently under consideration including both regional and sub-regional working.

The Committee considered the information presented and made the following points –

•           The Committee noted the contents of the letter; the Committee sought clarification as to whether the level of concern on the part of the Regulator with regard to certain aspects of service provision has reduced as the Authority moves forwards.

The CSSIW’s Lead Inspector said that whilst there has been concern around some areas as described in the letter e.g. slow progress in modernising the way services for adults with learning disabilities are commissioned, the Inspectorate is aware of the work being undertaken particularly with partners to progress matters in this area. The Authority is assessing how the risks with regard to domiciliary care are being managed; whilst the Authority is taking a systematic approach to the matter the outcome remains difficult to predict because the situation is evolving and remains live. The Inspectorate is assured that performance in relation to DoLS is primarily a data collection issue and there is no evidence to suggest that service users have suffered an adverse impact as a result of this matter.  A substantial amount of work has been done based on the detailed Children’s Services Improvement Plan and whilst the Inspectorate continues to have concerns regarding Children’s Services, it recognises that progress has been made especially in relation to the strategic approach to preventative services and to workforce and quality assurance issues.

•           The Committee sought clarification of the Inspectors’ use of the word “caution” in that part of the letter which refers to services for older people and residential provision to support people who have dementia and complex needs. The Inspectors clarified that the caution is in relation to recommissioning domiciliary care on a patch basis (other authorities in Wales have tried this approach and have encountered problems) and not in relation to the approach to residential support for people with dementia regarding which the Inspectors have no concerns. There are risks around transferring the right people to extra care provision; the Authority is aware of these and is drawing on its previous experiences of placing individuals in extra care provision. The Authority is also aware of the need to continue to provide appropriate care for vulnerable older people within their own homes.

•           The Committee noted that the Children’s Panel will be considering the actions within the Improvement Priority Plan that are specific to Children’s Services and that it is scheduled to report on progress against the detailed Improvement Plan to this Committee in November. The Committee further noted that it needs to be kept similarly informed of progress with regard to matters pertaining to Adults’ Services and it requested a corresponding update on Adults’ Services to the November meeting.

•           The Committee noted that some of the improvement priorities identified in the Action Plan do not carry an implementation target date. The Committee emphasised the importance of specifying timescales and of not leaving matters open ended and therefore at risk of not being addressed in a timely way. The Head of Adults’ Services said that some actions do not have a target date for specific reasons i.e.  because they follow on from other actions e.g. action point 1 is dependent on the receipt of a report from CSSIW. The Officer said that completion dates can be incorporated in the updates on the two services to the Committee’s November meeting.

It was resolved that the Committee –

•           Accepts and notes the content of the Annual Performance Review Letter issued by the Care and Social Services Inspectorate Wales in June, 2017 as a reflection of the progress of Social Services in 2016/17.

•           Endorses the Social Services Action Plan in response to the Annual Performance Review Letter.

•           Requests that a progress report against priority actions in both Adults’ and Children’s Services be presented to the Committee’s November meeting.

ADDITIONAL ACTION PROPOSED: That the updates on Adults’ and Children’s Services to the Committee’s November meeting include implementation dates for all priority actions.