Decision Maker: Cabinet

Outcome: Recommendations Approved

Is Key Decision?: Yes

Is Callable In?: Yes

Date of Decision: October 8, 2024

Purpose: Adult Social Care approach to day opportunities and overnight respite for adults with care and support needs

Content: This report set out the vision for day opportunities and overnight respite so that all adults with care and support needs could live well and independently as part of their communities. These services provided vital support for people to learn daily life skills and provide care to support independence. Day opportunities and overnight respite were delivered from many sites and run by external providers along with a council-run service called ‘the short breaks service’.   The current service model needed to ensure that the Council could meet the changing needs of adults with care and support needs in the community and achieve the vision. Most of the care and support was delivered through a variety of external providers.   There were three key drivers for change.  • Firstly, to ensure that the Council had the right service model to deliver the vision for day opportunities that focussed on supporting adults to live independently and well in the community, aligned to the Better Lives Strategy. • Secondly, to ensure that adults supported could access high quality facilities and buildings that meet their needs. • Thirdly, to provide value for money to the Council and taxpayers.   Over the last few years, the need for building-based provision had reduced considerably. Firstly, this was because of the work that had taken place to increase community-focused provision enabling access to mainstream activities including enabling participation in leisure facilities, facilitating access to shops to purchase provisions and enhancing daily living skills. Secondly, work had taken place with residential and supported living providers to strengthen their day activities offer, so that residents no longer must travel to a separate day centre to access meaningful activities during the day. And, thirdly, there had been an increase in the take up of direct payments which offered greater choice and flexibility for those that need care and support and their families/carers.   Three overall options for change had been considered. The first option was to continue to keep 7 council day centres and the same operating model. The second option was to keep 3 day centres and no longer deliver the service from the 4 other centres, as well as increasing external market provision. The third option considered was to close the Council’s Short Breaks service and deliver all day opportunities and overnight respite services through external providers alone.     Option 2 was recommended, which was to keep 3 council day centres and no longer deliver adult social care services from the 4 other centres. No decision has been taken on these options and the service area were proposing to consult to gather views to inform a decision.   RESOLVED –   (1)             That the proposal to go out to public consultation and seek views on the preferred operating model for Adult Social Care Day Opportunities and Overnight Respite Services be APPROVED. (2)             That following the public consultation exercise a report will come back to Cabinet on the consultation findings with a recommendation on the future operating model.