To: Members of the Oxfordshire Supporting People Commissioning Body

Notice of Meeting of the Oxfordshire Supporting People Commissioning Body

15 December 2006 at 10:30 am Meeting Rooms 1 & 2, County Hall, Oxford


Derek Bishop
Head of Democratic Services

7 December 2006

Contact Officers: Geoffrey Ferres
Tel: (01235) 469750; E-mail

Julie Dean
Tel: (01865) 815322; E-mail

THIS MEETING IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Membership

Chairman - Councillor Mary de Vere – Vale of White Horse District Council

Councillor Dorothy Brown – South Oxfordshire District Council

Councillor Jim Couchman – Oxfordshire County Council
Robert Evans – Thames Valley Probation Service
Coucillor Hilary Hibbert-Biles - West Oxfordshire District Council
Val m essenger – representative for Oxfordshire Primary Care Trusts
Councillor D.M. Pickford – Cherwell District Council
Graham Stratford – Oxford City Council

AGENDA

Addenda

  1. Apologies for Absence and Substitutions (if applicable)

  2. Declarations of Interest (all members of the Body shall be responsible for deciding whether they have a declarable interest, in accordance with the Codes of Conduct of their own organisation, if applicable).

  3. Minutes

    4. To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 22 September 2006 (SP3) and to receive for information any matters arising therefrom.

    For Information

  4. Grant Budget Report

This paper is for information and presents the latest information on spending:

    • The latest projected surplus for 2006/07 is now £76k - £73k higher than in the report to the September meeting of the Commissioning Body.

    • This projection applies only if contract variations of £476k relating to last year’s strategic reviews are implemented - £290k lower than in the report to the September meeting of the Commissioning Body.

Attached are four reports showing as follows:

    1. Overall forecast for 2006/07 (Appendix 1) (download as .xls file) broken down by client-group with the following columns:

    • Original budget (approved by Commissioning Body) for 2006/07

    • Forecast as presented to last Core Strategy Group

    • Actual payments made to end of October 2006 + forecast payments for remainder of year at current payment levels = current projected forecast at current rates

    • Variance between September & December Commissioning Body forecasts

    • Contract variations yet to be implemented

    • Current projected forecast (= projected forecast at current rates – contract variations yet to be implemented)

    1. Overall forecast for 2006/07 broken down by district and then by client-group (Appendix 2) .(download as .xls file).

    2. List of contract variations that have yet to be implemented broken down by client-group (Appendix 3).(download as .xls file)

    3. List of contract variations that have yet to be implemented broken down by district (Appendix 4) (download as .xls file)

Change in Forecast – Detail by Client-Group

This is an increase of £73k from the forecast surplus of £3k presented to the last meeting of the Commissioning Body. The three client-groups which have shown the greatest change in forecast outturn and the main reasons are:

    • Young People, £175k – savings implemented in respect of 24/7 Homeless 2 Housed (see below)

    • People with Mental Health Problems, £92k – revised unit costs on Oxfordshire Group Homes contracts (which delivered savings in excess of those previously listed among the contract variations to be implemented)

    • Homeless People, £88k – savings implemented on Oxford City Council’s Homeless Hostels (see below)

      Contract Variations Implemented since the September meeting

The two most significant variations implemented since the last meeting of the Commissioning Body have been:

    • Young People: BYHP – service 934, 24/7 Homeless 2 Housed (£169k)

    • Homeless People: Oxford City Council – service 1092, Homeless Hostels (£92k)

      Outstanding Contract Variations

Table below sets out the current state of play on implementing outstanding contract variations.

Provider Name

Implementation Status

Banbury Homes

Variation paperwork to be re-issued

Banbury Young Homeless People

Variation details are being agreed with the District partner

Cherwell Housing Trust

Meeting provider on 12 December

English Churches Housing Group

Service provider is in the process of signing variation paperwork

Soha Housing

Arranging meeting with service provider

Stonham

Variation paperwork to be re-issued

 

For Decision

  1. Development of Annual Plan 2007/08

    (See also Addenda)

    2. Service providers are still receiving for most services what they were paid in 2003/04 when the original interim contracts came into force. The Administering Authority produced a budget forecast for 2007/08 for the Core Strategy Group meeting on 1 November 2006 which showed there would be a surplus of £819,000 if no increase was paid to any service provider for 2007/08.

    The Core Strategy Group at its meeting on 29 November 2006 considered proposals from the Administering Authority for awarding increases of a maximum of 3.6% (the September figure for increases in both retail prices and average earnings) for services only where these services would still represent good value for money. The paper attached at SP5 (download as .doc file) outlines the detail of the Administering Authority’s proposals as amended by the Core Strategy Group.

    The forecast is Annexed to the report and it shows what the 2007/08 budget would look like if all services were awarded a 3.6% increase apart from floating support services, where it is envisaged tendering will enable Oxfordshire to procure the current capacity at no more than the current cost.

    The Commissioning Body will be asked to approve a final budget for 2007/08 by client-group at its meeting on 16 March 2007. This will be based upon awards of inflationary increases actually approved by the Core Strategy Group and any recommendations from the Core Strategy Group for deliberate changes in the relative share of different client-groups.

    The Core Strategy Group RECOMMENDS the Commissioning Body to agree that the Administering Authority offers a contract price increase of up to 3.6% for services for 2007/08 where this represents value for money and subject to the Eligibility Criteria agreed by the Commissioning Body, but not to existing services where new services will be procured to start during 2007/08.

  2. Review of Five-Year Strategy: Vision, Values and Objectives

    3. The Core Strategy Group at its meeting on 1 November 2006 reviewed the Vision, Values and Objectives in the current Five-Year Strategy and recommended they be reaffirmed with the amendments indicated in the paper attached at SP6 (download as .doc file).

    The Core Strategy Group agreed with the Administering Authority that the main consultation on the review of the Five-Year Strategy should not begin until the Government publishes its own national strategy, which the Minister, Phil Woolas MP, announced on 27 November 2006 will not now be published until February 2007.

    The Core Strategy Group RECOMMENDS the Commissioning Body to approve the Vision, Values and Objectives for consideration by service users, service providers and other stakeholders subject to the addition of an additional value "Service User and Carer Participation" to be drafted by the Administering Authority in consultation with officers from all partners.

  3. Review of Five-Year Strategy and Annual Plan 2006/07: Move On Services for Single Homeless People

    4. The Core Strategy Group at its meeting on 29 November 2006 considered the final report of a strategic review of move on from services for single homeless people commissioned by the Administering Authority and Oxford City Council from an external consultant.

    The report is attached at SP7. The report contains many proposals which officers will examine further and discuss how to take forward. But it also contains a small number of commissioning recommendations which require the approval of the Commissioning Body as they affect the Annual Plan for 2006/07.

    The Core Strategy Group RECOMMENDS the Commissioning Body to:

          1. re-commission the existing direct access hostels and Simon House;

          2. re-commission the existing 96 units of second stage accommodation;

          3. incorporate the proposed outcomes in the service specifications for the above services;

          4. commission a prototype project with a floating support provider to assess the potential for family-based support to be included in the portfolio of move on options;

          5. include a standard time scale for transfer and joint working with floating support providers that reflects best practice. We suggest a minimum of 3 months and maximum of 6 months would meet most people’s needs; and

          6. instruct the Oxfordshire Supporting People Team to implement the commissioning and procurement outcomes of the decisions in partnership with the commissioning partners and in conjunction with the County Council’s Legal and Procurement Services.

  4. Home Improvement Agency Services

    5. The process of finding a provider for the new home improvement agency and small repairs service has reached a critical point. The partners in the tender evaluation are still trying to agree a unanimous recommendation. Supporting People funding of £161,700 for the existing services ends on 31 March 2007.

    At the Core Strategy Group meeting on 29 November 2006 it was agreed to ask the strategic directors of the four districts involved to try to reach agreement in time for this meeting – Cherwell, South Oxfordshire, Vale of White Horse and West Oxfordshire. The Supporting People team and the County Council’s Social and Community Services Directorate have indicated they would support whichever provider the four districts are able to recommend unanimously.

    The issue for the Commissioning Body is whether the four districts unanimously recommend an option which could involve a small increase in Supporting People funding for the new service. If so, it will be for the Commissioning Body to agree this as part of the preparation of the Annual Plan for 2007/08.

    The Core Strategy Group at its meeting on 29 November 2006 agreed to RECOMMEND to the Commissioning Body that the strategic directors of the four districts concerned should be asked to agree a unanimous recommendation to this meeting as to which of two potential providers should be chosen for this service.

    For Information

  5. Accreditation of Service Providers

    6. The Commissioning Body approved an Oxfordshire Supporting People Accreditation Policy at its meeting in June 2004, based on Government guidance.

    The Core Strategy Group at its meeting on 4 October 2006 received a report on the outcome of the accreditation exercise. A copy of the report is attached at SP9. It has been updated to take account of recent further developments.

  6. Date of Next Meeting and Future Meetings

    (See also Addenda)

The next meeting will be held in Meeting Rooms 2 and 3, County Hall on Friday 16 March 2007.

The Chair has agreed the dates for the forthcoming 2007 Supporting People Commissioning Body meetings and these are set out as follows:

23 March 10:30 am
15 June 10:30 am
21 September 10:30 am
14 December 10:30 am

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