Agenda item

To submit the report of the Assistant Chief Executive (Governance and Business Process Transformation)/Statutory Director of Social Services.

The report of the Assistant Chief Executive (Governance and Business Process Transformation) and Statutory Director of Social Services on the effectiveness of Social Services during 2017/18 was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

The Chair and Portfolio Member for Social Services reported that the Annual Report had been scrutinised by the Corporate Scrutiny Committee at its meeting held on 5 July, 2018. She commended the report to the Executive.

The Assistant Chief Executive/Statutory Director of Social Services said that this is the second year wherein the Annual Report has followed the current format which is prescribed by the Code of Practice and is based on six Quality Standards. The report is aimed at a varied audience including elected members, the general public, service users, partners and Care Inspectorate Wales and seeks to promote awareness and accountability for the performance and progress made over the past year in delivering Social Services within the Isle of Anglesey County Council. The Service held a well-attended Service Challenge session on 14 June, 2018 to which partner organisations, third sector organisations, carers, and providers had been invited.

The Officer said with reference to Adults’ Services that the Service has made good progress during the year, in particular the re-modelling of Garreglwyd in Holyhead in order to provide specialist support for older people with dementia, thereby enabling them to remain on Anglesey closer to family and friends. Hafan Cefni, the new Extra Care facility in Llangefni is scheduled to open later in 2018 and will also enable more people to remain within their community as their care and support needs increase. In addition, the service has tendered for new Domiciliary Care arrangements which will improve access and consistency of service. The Social Services’ collaboration with partners has also improved during the year in particular with the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, North Wales Police and Third Sector partners.

Significant progress has been made in improving Children and Families’ Services during the year as acknowledged by Care Inspectorate Wales in its letter of January, 2018. Although a number of elements in the post Inspection Action and Improvement Plan are now in place, the Service continues on its journey of improvement and is due to be re-inspected by CIW later in 2018.

The Officer added that the Social Services’ support to the people of Anglesey is also a corporate responsibility and is not limited to statutory Children and Adults’ Services. The Service has arranged for all Council staff to receive training on Violence against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence which is mandatory on all councils and other public organisations; 75% have received training at the first level which compares well with other local authorities

The Statutory Director of Social Services thanked all those who had contributed to the Social Services’ performance during the year be that by collaboration or by providing support and challenge; those include the Service’s partners and service providers; communities on Anglesey, the staff of Adults’ and Children and Families’ Services and also the Elected Members serving on the Corporate Scrutiny Committee, the Executive and the Children’s Panel and the Adults’ Services Transformation Board.

Councillor Aled M. Jones, Chair of the Corporate Scrutiny Committee reported that the Committee at its meeting on 5 July 2018 had scrutinised the Annual Report in detail and had resolved to accept the report and to recommend it to the Executive.

The Executive considered the Annual Report and made the following observations –

•  That Social Services have now transferred to the Welsh Community Care Information System (WCCIS) which integrates social care and health information in a national system. The Executive noted that the Service had experienced initial issues with the system which are being addressed with external support. The Executive sought assurance that Social Services’ staff are now happy in the use of the system and that the system meets theirs and the service’s needs.

The Statutory Director of Social Services said that the WCCIS helps Health and Social Care staff including both Children and Adults’ Social Care staff work together to provide better care based on a single national information system. However, the system can be adapted and Anglesey’s Social Services has engaged a consultant to implement modifications to ensure the system is responsive to the Service’s needs; this process has commenced with Children and Families’ Services and is to be followed by Adults’ Services.

The Head of Children and Families’ Services confirmed that the Service is working through the various work streams in Children and Families’ Services to establish how the WCCIS can be made to suit each element of the service. This work has been completed to the staff’s satisfaction in relation to Teulu Môn and work is now commencing on the second phase in relation to Child Protection and Looked after Children services.

The Head of Adults’ Services said that the Service is working with the Consultant to ensure that work streams are reasonable thereby ensuring the system enables the service to support individuals in the community and to oversee staff whilst being aware of the work that needs to be done, and also that there is easy access to the information required to support each individual’s care. There are regular meetings with the Consultant and it is anticipated that areas in Adults’ Services will be addressed towards the middle part or the end of the summer. The Officer said that in the areas where the system has been adapted to meet the service’s specific needs, it has made a significant difference.

•  That Social Services and in particular Children and Families’ Services are experiencing financial pressures and were overspent in 2017/18. In light of the financial challenges, the Executive sought clarification of how Social Services plan to ensure continuous improvement.

The Statutory Director of Social Services said that the legislative and legal requirements in relation to children and families have increased as has the number of children and young people needing to be looked after by the Authority. Their care needs are met in different ways e.g. placements with foster carers, with friends and family and sometimes due to specific reasons, they are placed out of county which can be costly. A small percentage of young people receive their care in out of county residential placements and these incur significant costs. Whilst the service is seeking to safely reduce the number of children and young people in care placed out of county, these are costs which are largely out of the Authority’s control as it has to meet the needs of the children and young people it looks after in the most appropriate way. The Service is focusing on developing prevention and early intervention strategies e.g. the Resilient Families Team to reduce the need for children to become looked after as well as recruiting additional foster carers so that looked after children can remain on the Island. The Service is also considering setting up a Small Group Homes arrangement.

•  That an important factor in enabling people to remain independent for longer thereby reducing the need for residential/nursing care is the development of community based provision. The Executive sought clarification of the progress made in developing community hubs on the Island and the financial support for them as well as the expectations for Extra Care services in Hafan Cefni and beyond.

The Head of Adults’ Services said that community based provision as well as Extra Care provision enable people to remain within their communities. Community Hubs provide older people with the opportunity to stay active within their communities by participating in and contributing towards community activities. Similarly, Extra Care provision allows people to remain independent within their own homes where otherwise they might have entered residential or nursing care. The Authority believes these are more effective and efficient ways of meeting the needs of older people. The Authority has been helping Community Hubs access grant funding mostly in the form of capital funds to adapt buildings; the Authority does not as a rule provide the Hubs with long-term grant support instead encouraging them to be self-supporting. However, there have been occasions when the Authority has intervened and when that happens it seeks to ensure that it acts consistently and fairly. The Extra Care facility at Hafan Cefni is expected to open mid-September, 2018 and 40 of the apartments have been allocated. By the time it is open it is anticipated that the facility will be nearing full occupation recognising also that the people who will be accommodated at Hafan Cefni are those whose needs are best met through Extra Care. The planned Extra Care facility in the Seiriol area is linked to a decision in relation to the future of the school in Beaumaris; the scheme can be progressed once a decision has been made. It is the intention to extend Extra Care throughout the Island with the North being the next area to be considered.

It was resolved to accept the Annual Report of the Statutory Director of Social Services as an accurate reflection of the effectiveness of Social Services during 2017/18.