To note the contents of the report.

Hilary Hall, Executive Director of Adults, Health and Housing, introduced the item. She noted that the report was for Quarter 2 (July–September 2021) and therefore would also give an update on where the Borough was presently at the end of Quarter 3 (December 2021).

Hilary Hall explained the status of the Adults Services.

She started with Care Package reviews. At the end of Q2, care reviews were slightly below target but within tolerance thresholds due to the impact of vacancies in the workforce as well as more complex new cases which had taken officer time. The position at the end of Q3 was improving, the figure was still just below target but there were still ambitions to reach the target. Hilary Hall added that all cases were risk assessed to ensure that reviews were prioritised according to need.

Hilary Hall then moved on to Permanent Admissions to care homes. By the end of Q2 (September 2021), there was an increase in admissions to care homes (above tolerance thresholds) mainly due to people being discharged from hospital with much more complexity of need and therefore required more intense support. The position at the end of Q3 had been the same with an increase in care home admissions and no expectation that this would be reduced in Q4 (January–March 2022).

Hilary Hall then discussed Reablement. By the end of Q2, the percentage of rehabilitation clients still at home 91 days after discharge was below target but within the tolerance threshold. While still below target in Q3, she predicted that the target would be reached by the end of 2022.

On Carers’ Assessments, Hilary Hall stated that performance had been dropping throughout Q2; therefore, there had been a focus on improving this over the last two months. There was a data cleansing exercise which was completed in November 2021, enabling a clear view of the people that needed to be reviewed. Hilary Hall added that a carers’ survey was conducted with the results being positive comments from carers about the support they received.

For satisfaction with the adults’ safeguarding process, Hilary Hall reported ongoing good performance.

Councillor Bateson asked if people left hospital and go into care outside the Borough and they have no money, does the area the person goes to pay for it or does the Borough do it. Hilary Hall answered that if the individual was a RBWM resident and their financial assets were below £23,000 then the Borough would pay for it, wherever they were located.

Councillor Bateson followed by asking about waiting times for people going into care homes. Hilary Hall replied that there was typically no waiting time, usually people go straight from hospital to the care home placement. At the moment, it was taking a bit longer to find placements due to the demand. She added that direct payments were being offered to families to support them to take their relatives back home rather than move them into care homes which may not be in their best interests. Essentially, due to pressure on the NHS, a series of methods were being used to support discharge from hospital.

Kevin McDaniel then discussed the status of children’s services during quarter 2.

In summary, for care leavers, there was a positive performance for the number of care leavers who went into education, employment or training.

For health visiting, Kevin McDaniel stated that the rate of health visiting from parents was decreasing below target. In response, the trend was being monitored, recognising that it was tracking towards pre-pandemic levels.

Kevin McDaniel then mentioned there was a positive increase in School Ofsted ratings.

For children’s social care, there was an increase in re-referrals in the past 2 to 3 months, driven by factors including Covid concerns and anxieties. Despite this increase, there were no concerns of the rate at the moment, and it was being monitored.

Regarding Child Protection Plans, Kevin McDaniel stated he was confident that the improved processes and monitoring of the Plans was maintain quality as well as timeliness.

For Special Education Needs and Disability, there was a high level of performance of completing Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs), reaching above target.

Councillor Tisi asked if health visiting checks had fully returned to in-person meetings or a hybrid model was in place in which video calls were offered. Kevin McDaniel stated that hybrid models were still being offered; but were also running in-person and clinical appointments as a first preference.

Councillor Sharpe asked officers how long it would take before they thought life would return to pre-pandemic normality with the lifting of Covid restrictions. Kevin McDaniel gave a children’s social service perspective on the Covid situation. During the early stages of the pandemic, there were regulatory changes which released the Council from its duties, such as visiting in-person. As these measures had come to an end in autumn 2021, Kevin McDaniel believed these measures had passed. He added that there was work to help overcome any residual fears which discouraged people from using services in the way they are best engaged, such as elective home education, admission to school and in-door group activities. Kevin McDaniel speculated that the change in season with warmer weather would cause more restrictions to be lifted as well as enabling people to do outdoor activities.

Hilary Hall then answered Councillor Sharpe’s question from an adult social care perspective. In spite of the pandemic, care and support continued to be provided for people in care. In addition to residual anxiety, Hilary Hall stated an area of concern was the long-term impact of pandemic on people’s health and wellbeing as well as the knock-on impact on adult social care.

RESOLVED UNANIMOUSLY: That the Adults, Children and Health Overview and Scrutiny Panel noted the report and:

i)               Noted the 2021/22 Adults, Children and Health Overview and Scrutiny Panel Q2 Data & Performance Report in Appendix A.

ii)             Requested relevant Cabinet Members, Directors and Heads of Service to maintain focus on improving performance.