Agenda and minutes

There were no declarations of interest.

Report of the Director of Adult Services

The Board gave brief consideration to a report of the Executive Director of People concerning the Adult Services Workforce Development Strategy 2017-2019 and the Practice Quality Assurance Framework for Adult Social Care. Copies of the strategy and framework were set out at appendices to the report. The issue had been discussed at length at the Board’s workshop which had taken place earlier in the day. Councillor Abbott, Cabinet Member for Adult Services attended the meeting for the consideration of this issue.

The report indicated that workforce development was a key element of providing a good quality Adult Social Care service, both in respect of ensuring staff had the skills and learning opportunities to operate in an evolving social care environment and ensuring that staff working in the service were able to respond to the challenges they faced. Linked to this a Practice Quality Assurance framework was key to understanding practice standards and supporting staff to improve and learn where required.

The workforce strategy was conceived out of the need to support the implementation of the vision and principles for Adult Social Care and outlined the key workforce challenges for Adult Services over the next two years. The strategy complimented the City Council’s current Workforce Strategy. The Strategy outlined current national and local demographics, adult social care activity and an overview of the current adult services workforce. It provides a framework for Adult Social Care to ensure its workforce was skilled, stable, motivated and committed to delivering its objectives and that the Council was achieving positive outcomes for the people of Coventry within the resources available.

The development and subsequent delivery of the strategy was overseen by the Adult Services Workforce Development Board chaired by the Director of Adult Services. The strategy outlined the workforce priorities for the next two years which included a priority to enhance leadership, management and supervision to support practice development. A key activity in supporting this priority was the implementation of a revised quality assurance framework which included a process for organisational health checks.

The Adult Services Practice Quality Assurance Framework detailed the service’s approach to quality assurance. The framework built on previous casework audits and developed the approach to focus on self-assessment and quality assessment methods at social work and occupational therapy practitioner level. By applying the framework it was anticipated that there would be greater consistency and accountability in the quality of service provided, with the right support and challenge in place to improve practice.

The specific audit components were in two key areas, those to be owned and delivered by practitioners and their line managers and those to be delivered at an organisational level. The finding from quality assurance would be collated, with compliance and key themes forming part of the quarterly report. This would ensure clear governance reporting and oversight of social care quality and improvement. The framework had been subject to surveying and feedback from front line staff in order to ensure it was relevant and useable by both managers and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 23.

Briefing Note of the Director of Adult Services

The Board considered a briefing note of the Executive Director of People which provided an update on the Better Care Fund (BCF) Plan for 2017-19, a copy of the plan was attached as an appendix to the note. The briefing note had previously been considered by the Coventry Health and Wellbeing Board at their meeting on 16^th October, 2017 and the Board had given their approval to the Plan. Councillor Abbott, Cabinet Member for Adult Services attended the meeting for the consideration of this issue.

The briefing note indicated that the integration of health and care had been a long standing national policy ambition based on the premise that more joined up services would help improve the health and care of local populations and make more efficient use of available resources. Prior to, and subsequently alongside the Better Health, Better Care, Better Value programme, the BCF was implemented in 2015 as part of the government drive to integrate health and care. In response a BCF Plan was developed locally. A new plan was now required to cover the period 1^st April, 2017 to 31^st March, 2019 including how the Coventry element of additional funding in the spring budget for Adult Social Care was to be used.

The Board noted that the planning schedule meant that the planning tools were available in July, 2017 with the plan being submitted by 11^th September, 2017. Meeting timescales meant the plan was only endorsed by the Health and Wellbeing Board in October.

The total value of the 2017-19 pooled budget from ring-fenced City Council and Coventry and Rugby CCG funds was £179.5m (£63.897m of local authority resources and £115.605m of CCG resources).

The Board were informed that a detailed policy framework for the implementation of the BCF was published in April, with further detailed guidance on delayed transfers of care being issued to local areas in July. There was an expectation that delayed transfers of care should equate to no more than 3.5% of all hospital beds by November, 2017. It was emphasised that this was extremely challenging to Coventry and a trajectory had been included within the BCF Plan to meet this expectation.

Detailed financial and operational plans had been developed to reflect the current CCG and social care priorities within the city. The following three purposes had been assigned to the additional BCF grant announced in the spring budget and set out in the plan:

To meet Adult Social Care

To provide support to the NHS (especially through the application of 8 high impact changes)

To sustain the social care provider market.

The plan recognised that as well as achieving effective discharge, preventing admission to hospital was just as crucial to the effectiveness of the health and care system. Consequently activity under the BCF would also focus on a range of projects that sought to improve support to people away from the hospital setting.

The briefing note highlighted the mandatory content and the national conditions contained  ...  view the full minutes text for item 24.

Outstanding issues have been picked up in the Work Programme

The Board noted that all outstanding issues had been included in their work programme.

Report of the Scrutiny Co-ordinator

The Board noted their work programme for the year including the arrangements for the Board’s visit to Coventry University on 1^st November.

Any other items of public business which the Chair decides to take as matters of urgency because of the special circumstances involved

There were no additional items of public business.