Purpose

To approve the Kingston Upon Thames Better Care Fund 2023-25.

Decision

Approval of the Kingston Upon Thames Better Care Fund 2023-25.

This urgent decision was taken under current Procedure Rule 30, more information can be found under issue history.  

Reasons for the decision

The Better Care Fund (BCF) is a long-standing national mechanism to pool NHS and local authority funding to enhance integration across health and social care.

The BCF 23-25 policy framework sets out two core objectives:

1.    enable people to stay well, safe and independent at home for longer

2.    provide people with the right care, at the right place, at the right time

Financial Implications

Kingston’s BCF budget for 23/24 is a total of £18.05m (+2% compared to 22/23) and spent against schemes, including Adult Social Care (ASC) teams delivering proactive anticipatory care and discharge support, care homes and home care (long and short term), integrated community services, equipment and home adaptations, as well as Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) capacity and direct payments.

The budget for 24-25 is estimated to be £19.53m (+8% compared to 23/24). An ageing population with rising levels of complexity in need and workforce / market rate pressures will mean that partners will need to review and agree on how best the BCF spend can tackle identified areas of need.

A BCF Review across South West London and in Kingston, due to be completed in summer 2023, will help to inform discussion about achieving better value for money and improved outcomes across the system. Any changes to the plan as a result from this review will be included in a mid-term BCF refresh.