Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Adult Social Care

Forward Plan Ref: 2022/128

Contact: Pippa Corner, Deputy Director Commissioning, pippa.corner@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by Corporate Director for Adult Services (CA13).

To note the Fair Cost of Care Exercise and the development of Oxfordshire’s Market Sustainability Plan.

Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to note the process undertaken so far, so that the project group can continue to work towards presenting the final analysis, findings, and report with the provisional market sustainability plan, using the cost of care exercise as a key input in identifying risks in the local market and spend report, ready for submission to DHSC on 12 October 2022. The final market sustainability plan will be submitted in February 2023.

Recommendations agreed.

Cabinet was asked to note the process undertaken so far, so that the project group can continue to work towards presenting the final analysis, findings, and report with the provisional market sustainability plan.

Pippa Corner, Deputy Director for Joint Commissioning, summarised the report.  The Fair Cost of Care exercise was a statutory requirement.  There was a competition to identify a supplier.  LaingBuisson were contracted as a result.  The process has been supported by the Oxfordshire Association of Care Providers.  Work has now moved on to developing a market sustainability plan.  Central government will decide when to publish plans.

Councillor Calum Miller noted that one of the challenges in being a ‘trailblazer’ in this process was that the Council had to adopt reforms before there was clarity from central government on funding.  It would appear that clarity will not be forthcoming until January at the earliest which was very late in the budget planning process.

Asked if there was any early learning from the process so far, Pippa Corner responded that the government tools provided for information gathering were quite complicated and LaingBuisson had to engage in a lot of direct contact with providers to ensure the requests were understood correctly and the deadline for applications was extended to maximise the feedback.

The recommendation was proposed by Councillor Miller, seconded by Councillor Hannaby and agreed.

RESOLVED to:

note the process undertaken so far, so that the project group can continue to work towards presenting the final analysis, findings, and report with the provisional market sustainability plan, using the cost of care exercise as a key input in identifying risks in the local market and spend report, ready for submission to DHSC on 12 October 2022. The final market sustainability plan will be submitted in February 2023.