Resolved:

That the Acting Corporate Director Children, Schools and Families be authorised to award the contracts for services to BUPA Healthcare and Allied Healthcare on behalf of the Authority as below:

Action by:

ACTING CORPORATE DIRECTOR, CHILDREN SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES (I. CATTERMOLE)

Interim Service Head Resources, Children Schools and Families (K. Bingham)

External Funding and Commissioning Manager, Strategy Partnerships and Performance, Children Schools and Families (K. Badgery)

Commissioning and Contracts Manager, Strategy Partnerships and Performance, Children Schools and Families (A. Smith)

Ms Cattermole, Acting Corporate Director Children, Schools and Families, at the request of the Mayor, in introducing the report:

·                    Summarised the key points contained therein, highlighting in particular:

o                   The proposals, regarding the award of contracts by the Authority for the delivery of healthcare and personal care for disabled children, were good news for this particularly vulnerable element of the Community and their families:

Ø                  It would be possible to tailor service provision to individual need, and enable more reliable and consistent delivery by a small team of workers familiar to and with those receiving care.

Ø                  Wider opportunities would be available to the children, promoting independence and participation in a full range of activities.

Ø                  Parents and families, acknowledged to suffer high levels of stress in relation to the provision of care packages, would be supported and empowered to identify solutions and secure interventions, with improved outcomes for the children.

o                   Extensive consultation had been undertaken with children, young people, and their families, who were receiving personal care. The primary concern must be for the needs of these young people to be met and therefore to listen to them regarding what service provision they considered that they needed. The comments of existing users had been reflected in the proposals. The tender evaluation panel had the added advantage of including the parent of a disabled child.

o                   There was a statutory duty placed on the Authority to provide personal care services to disabled children.

o                   Families wishing to continue to receive care from existing providers would be given the opportunity to do so.

·                    Addressed the matters raised by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, held on 30^th November 2010, in relation to the report; as set out in the tabled sheet of questions and comments presented by the Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee earlier in the proceedings:

A discussion followed, during which the proposals in the report were broadly welcomed, and which focused on the following points:-

·                    Clarification/ assurance was sought and given in relation to the use of Third Sector service providers for the provision of care to disabled children.

·                    Clarification/ assurance was sought and given that the company recommended for award of contract in relation to delivery of healthcare and personal care for disabled children would provide the best service for those children. Clarification/ assurance sought and given regarding the mechanisms for monitoring standards of service provision.

·                    Clarification/ assurance was sought and given that local people would be employed by service providers for the provision of care to disabled children.

·                    Councillor Oliur Rahman, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, commented that he had discussed the proposed award of contract in detail with the Acting Corporate Director Children Schools and Families, and gave an assurance that he would be monitoring provision closely to ensure this group of children received the service they were entitled to. He also highlighted that the introduction of this contract would yield savings of approximately £700,000 over 3 years.

The Mayor in Moving the recommendations as set out in the report commented that:-

·                    It was his intention and that of his Cabinet that the most vulnerable elements of the Community, such as this group of children, should be looked after and therefore provided with the best service possible. He accepted the recommendation from Officers that this contract award was congruent with that aspiration.

·                    It was important to note that the new contract would yield significant savings in particularly difficult times.

And it was:-

Resolved:

That the Acting Corporate Director Children, Schools and Families be authorised to award the contracts for services to BUPA Healthcare and Allied Healthcare on behalf of the Authority as below:

Reasons for Decisions

These are detailed in paragraphs 3.1 to 3.10 of the report (CAB 061/101)

Alternative Options Considered

These are detailed in paragraph 5.1 of the report (CAB 061/101)