Decision details

On the 15 May 2020  a care home support package was announced by Government backed by a £600m infection control fund . The specified purpose of the grant is to provide support to adult social care providers, including those with whom the Council does not have a contract, to reduce the rate of COVID-19 transmission in and between care homes and support wider workforce resilience to enable improved infection control. Previous decisions Report Ref: OKD17 20/21 and Report ref: OKD23 20/21 dealt with these arrangements. A further sum of money under Infection Control Grant arrangements will be allocated to West Sussex County Council for distribution.

On 17^th September 2020 the government announced a second support package for adult social care providers backed by a further £546m infection control fund.  The West Sussex allocation of this money is £10.958m. The expectation from government is that 80% of the money is passported directly to registered care home providers and other CQC regulated community care providers. The remaining 20% is allocated to the care sector, to support COVID infection control measures, based on local discretion.

The Director of Law and Assurance, in consultation with the Interim Executive Director of Adults and Health and the Chairman of the Health and Adults Scrutiny Committee has approved that;

(1)  80% of the Infection Control Grant Funding is paid to care home and other CQC regulated community care providers, in line with Government Guidance, subject to the government grant conditions, and the providers’ acceptance of the terms and conditions of the Council’s grant agreement with them; and

(2)  the allocation of the remaining 20% of the Infection Control Funding be subject to a further decision by the Executive Director of Adults and Health, to support  the care sector, in the county, to  put in place other COVID infection control measures, based on the Council’s discretion and made subject to appropriate grant conditions.

None.