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ITEM EX10

EXECUTIVE - 10 DECEMBER 2002

INTEGRATED MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES – ADMINISTRATION SERVICES

Report by Director for Social & Health Care

Background

  1. In October 2001 the former Social Services Committee agreed, in principle, to develop a model for the single management of Community Mental Health Teams. On 19 February 2002, the Executive of the County Council agreed the proposed model and authorised the Director of Social Services to proceed to implementation. This model was successfully implemented and the current proposal presents a further step towards fully integrated mental health and social care services for adults of working age.

    2. Current Situation

  2. Administration for the Social & Health Care (S&HC) staff based in Community Mental Health teams is currently provided by S&HC administration services and managed through local S&HC area offices. Administrative support is calculated on the number of social worker (care manager) and community support worker hours within the teams. On the whole, the numbers of S&HC staff within the teams are small and their corresponding administrative support is therefore also small. This presents difficulties for cover arrangements and often relies on health administration colleagues employed by Oxfordshire Mental Healthcare NHS Trust, who are more numerous, to offer support. This current arrangement does not aid a cohesive system and can result in isolation for the S&HC administration worker.

    3. Proposal

  3. As a next step towards integration of health and social care in respect of Mental Health Services for adults of working age, it is proposed that the administration services currently provided by Oxfordshire County Council and Oxfordshire Mental Healthcare NHS Trust, to the Community Mental Health Teams, should be amalgamated.

    4. Implications for Staff

  4. As a result of the amalgamated support service all staff would be employed by Oxfordshire Mental Healthcare NHS Trust who would enter into a contract with Oxfordshire County Council to provide administrative support to S&HC staff.

  5. In preparation for this anticipated change, as staff have left, the posts have been filled by temporary (agency) staff. Currently there are no administrative staff supporting these teams employed by Oxfordshire County Council. There will therefore be no transfer of staff and TUPE does not apply.

    6. Exemption under Contract Procedure Rules

  6. The value of the service is approximately £75,000 per annum and under the Council’s Constitution a contract for this volume of service would require a tendering process. This would not be consistent with the proposal to amalgamate the existing administrative support into a single provider and the approval of Executive is sought for exemption from the requirement to tender (Rule 3.2 of the Contract Procedure Rules).

  7. Such exemption requires legal and financial appraisal and the Solicitor to the Council and Assistant County Treasurer (acting for the S151 officer) have confirmed that the proposed exemption is entirely appropriate: the alternative would be to leave the current arrangements as they are, which would not facilitate a cohesive and efficient service.

    8. RECOMMENDATIONS

  8. The Executive is RECOMMENDED to :

          1. agree the proposed model outlined in the report for the provision of administrative support to Community Mental Health Teams by the Oxfordshire Mental Healthcare NHS Trust on behalf of the County Council under contract;

          2. agree for the purpose of Rule 3.2 of the Contract Procedure Rules to exempt the contract from the requirement to tender, for the reasons set out in the report, and authorise the Director for Social & Health Care to complete the contract with Oxfordshire Mental Healthcare NHS Trust accordingly.

CHARLES WADDICOR
Director for Social & Health Care

Background papers: Nil

Contact Officer: Lorna Brown, Assistant Director (Community Care) Tel: 01865 815828

November 2002

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