Agenda item

Councillor Steven Kelly, Cabinet Member for Individuals, introduced the report

The report provided Members with an overview of the current arrangements for the provision of domiciliary care services to the residents of Havering and detailed proposals to extend the existing delivery for a fixed period, to allow time to procure new arrangements for the provision of the service. 

It was suggested that the new Framework Agreement would support the delivery of the emerging personalisation agenda within Adult Social Care and offer greater control over the resources used to provide care.

Reasons for the decision:

1. To preserve the continued delivery of domiciliary care to adults in Havering.

2.  To make arrangements for the delivery of that care from mid 2012 onwards.

Other options considered:

1. Do nothing.  The current contract arrangements would come to an end and all future domiciliary care packages would need to be procured on an individual basis.  This is not a practical option and would lead to a potential decrease in quality and value for money.

2. To extend the current contracts would only offer the Council a short-term solution.  The current contracts did not acknowledge many of the legislative changes of the past five years, the introduction of technologies to better manage the domiciliary process and establish real efficiency savings or allow for the flexibility.  All of the aforementioned were now seen as essential to deliver on the personalisation agenda.

The extension of the current contractual arrangements for a period of up to one year is seen as essential.  No other option would ensure that the Council is in a position to engage in a meaningful tender process or enable the development of an innovative service specification that allows for outcome based commissioning and contracting that will deliver on the personalisation agenda.

Cabinet AGREED:

1.                  To approve the extension of the current block domiciliary care contract until 30^th September 2012, in order to allow time for a formal tendering process to take place.

2.                  To approve the invitation and evaluation of tenders for the provision of domiciliary care services to Adults under a Framework Agreement with the Council.