Purpose

Community Short Breaks Offer for children/young people with
disabilities and/or complex needs in Peterborough from April
2024

Decision

The Cabinet approved:
 
1)   
The award of 8x block contracts for the delivery of Community Short
Breaks from 01.04.2024, each with an initial contract term of 3
years; with an option to extend up to 2 years, in increments of 12
months, as follows:

a.   
A1 – All Year Small Group awarded to Circles Network (Company
Number: 02972700), with a value of £60,000 per annum
(£300,000 for the contract term including extension
period).

b.   
A2 – Holiday Only Small Group awarded to Circles Network
(Company Number:  02972700), with a value of
£60,000 per annum (£300,000 for the contract term
including extension period).

c.   
 A3 – Term Time Only Small Group awarded to
Circles Network (Company Number:  02972700), with
a value of £30,000 per annum (£150,000 for the contract
term including extension period).

d.   
A4 – Holiday Only Small Group awarded to Breakthrough Therapy
(Company Number: 11919412), with a value of £25,000 per annum
(£125,000 for the contract term including extension
period).

e.   
B1 – All Year Large Group awarded to Circles Network (Company
Number: 02972700), with a value of £32,000 per annum
(£160,000 for the contract term including extension
period).

f.    
B2 – All Year Large Group awarded to Peterborough Limited
(Company Number:  1493249), with a value of
£28,000 per annum (£140,000 for the contract term
including extension period).

g.   
 B3 – Holiday Only Large Group awarded to
Circles Network (Company Number:  02972700), with
a value of £28,000 per annum (£140,000 for the contract
term including extension period).

h.   
B4 – Autism Focused Large Group awarded to Romsey Mill Trust
(Company Number: 3556721), with a value of £25,000 per annum
(£125,000 for the contract term including extension
period).
 
2)   
Delegate approval to the Executive Director of Adult Social Care
& Commissioning following consultation with the Executive
Director for Children and Young Peoples Service for the decision
whether to invoke the extension period for each or any of the 8x
block contracts following the initial contract term and in
accordance with the contract provisions.
3)   
Delegate approval to the Executive Director Adult Social Care &
Commissioning to agree an uplift (per annum) of the contract value,
subject to internal governance arrangements

Reasons for the decision

Community Short
Breaks are a statutory service and a key part of the provision
offered to children & young people with disabilities and
complex needs, and their families, within PCC. The current
Community Short Breaks contracts end at the end of March 2024, with
all extension periods utilised.
 
The
recommissioned Community Short Breaks enables PCC to meet their
statutory duty of offering a range of short breaks, as well as
meeting the priorities identified in Section 4.3.
 

Alternative options considered

If
the current contracts were to come to an end in March 2024 without
recommissioning a new Community Short Breaks offer, Peterborough
City Council would be going against their statutory duty to deliver
a range of Short Breaks for children/young people with
disabilities. There is also no option to extend the current
contracts due to the 2-year extension period already being
implemented from 2021.

 
An
alternative option was to commission this support through a
Framework or Dynamic Purchasing System arrangement. However, this
option was rejected following soft market testing indicating a lack
of interest from the provider market due to inconsistency of
funding leading to lack of sustainability.