Decisions

In October 2019, the Cabinet Member for Adults and Health approved the commencement of a procurement process, via a Framework Agreement to secure the provision of Public Health Services in West Sussex (Cabinet Member decision reference AH6 19/20). The Public Health Services, for the population of West Sussex, referred to include NHS Health Checks, Smoking Cessation, Long Acting Reversible Contraception (LARC) (Contraceptive Implant and Intra-Uterine Contraceptive Device), Emergency Hormonal Contraception (EHC) and Alcohol Identification and Brief Advice Services.

The total value of the contracts to the County Council for the Public Health Services, funded through the public health grant, is approximately £6.5m for five (5) years (including an extension period). 

Following completion of the procurement process, which was conducted in accordance with West Sussex Standing Orders and European Union Procurement Directives, the Director of Public Health will be asked to approve the award of the Contract for the provision of Public Health Services to the successful bidders. 

The Director of Public Health has approved;

1)   the award of contracts to all service providers who passed the evaluation criteria in the recent procurement exercise for an initial term of 3 years, with the option to extend for up to two further years commencing on the 1^st April 2020; and

2)   the immediate re-opening of the Approved Provider List for further applications to ensure desired coverage across the County.

The purpose of Operation Watershed is to support people in their local communities who want to work with the County Council to become more prepared for, or to reduce the risk of, flooding. Local groups are encouraged to apply for funding to finance schemes and projects of all sizes as a way of achieving this.

£1.500m is allocated for Operation Watershed in the Capital Programme agreed by Full Council in December 2017.  The allocation for 2019/20 is £0.300m.  In this period five full applications have been received and evaluated totalling£52,431.16 and are set out in Appendix A of the report.

The Cabinet Member for Highways and Infrastructure has approved the applications from the community groups or parish councils set out in Appendix A of the report.

The Local Healthwatch (LHW) service is the local ‘Consumer Champion’ for all NHS and Social Care services and is supported by the national body, Healthwatch England (HWE) part of the Care Quality Commission (CQC). The service’s purpose is to understand the needs, experiences and concerns of people who use health and social care services and to speak out on their behalf. Local authorities have a duty under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act (2012) to ensure that an effective local Healthwatch and Independent Complaints Advocacy service is operating in their area delivering the activities set out in the legislation. 

The Independent NHS Complaints Advocacy Service (IHCAS) is a client-centred, flexible service which supports anyone who wishes to resolve a complaint about healthcare commissioned and/or provided by the NHS in England.

Following decision by the Cabinet Member for Adults and Health to commence a Procurement Process (report ref: AH9 19/20) from 1 April 2020 for a contract of up to 7 years duration at £342,600 per annum with a maximum total contract value of £2.549m, the Director of Public Health will award the contract to the bidder who has submitted the most economically advantageous tender.

The Director of Public Health has approved the award of the contract for the Local Healthwatch and Independent Complaints Advocacy Service in West Sussex for an initial period of five (5) years commencing 1^st April 2020. The contract includes the option to extend for up to two further years, if delivery and performance of the contract are satisfactory.

Pursuant to the Council’s Support Services Outsourcing Contract, Capita provide the Council’s temporary agency workers, via a contract with Manpower. The current contract with Manpower is due to expire on 19 September 2020.

The contract provides temporary agency workers to all departments of the Council, except for schools. The Council proposes that the new contract model is a vendor neutral managed service whereby the supplier will procure and manage a chain of agencies without submitting their own candidates as a preferred supplier.  The Council requires a contract for the supply of agency workers to cover short term vacancies, absences and to provide additional capability, where there are skills shortages, to deliver responsive services.

The Council currently spends approximately £15 million per annum on agency workers (on and off contract). Carrying out an open competitive procurement exercise will provide value for money for the Council whilst ensuring quality services on the best terms available in the market.

The Cabinet Member has approved

1.       the commencement of a procurement exercise for a new contract for the provision of temporary agency worker recruitment services, as detailed in this report, to commence on 01 October 2020 for a period of three years with the option to extend for up to one further year at an estimated maximum contract value of £72m; and the

2.       Delegation of authority to the Director of Finance and Support Services to award the contract to the provider who submits the most economically advantageous tender and can best meet the quality and performance standards required by the Council.

Care and support at home services (also known as domiciliary care or home care) are services purchased by the Council on behalf of people who have been assessed as having eligible social care needs. These services support people to maintain their independence through the provision of personal care and support.

The Council currently commissions the majority of these services from a framework agreement which commenced in 2015 and which will come to an end in January 2021. This framework was developed jointly with NHS Continuing Healthcare who also use the contract.   In addition, the Council purchases services from the wider market through a contractual agreement. The commissioning of care and support at home is being reviewed with proposals being developed for new arrangements to be established across the county which will enable the achievement of our strategic aim to support people to live independent lives for longer. The Council will continue to work with health partners on these arrangements, to prevent unnecessary emergency hospital admissions and speed up discharges.

Given the strategic context in which this recommissioning is set, Care and Support at Home shall ensure that it:

·       Enables people to be independent for longer in their home, having choice and control over their care which is personalised for their needs.

·       Stimulates the care market to build capacity and deliver sustainable and high quality care, including a skilled, valued and sustainable workforce.

·       Strengthens community networks and supports people closer to where they live. Including increasing the number of Direct Payments.

·       Works in partnership with providers, the NHS, communities, the independent and voluntary sector and those in receipt of care to ensure the coordination and delivery of high quality care.

·       Understands market capacity and capability to make informed decisions and be innovative. Improve technology systems, including payments to improve the process for all stakeholders.

·       Maximises short-term services to reduce demand and maximise customer independence.

Following the current review and a public consultation, the Cabinet Member for Adults and Health will be asked to approve the commencement of a procurement process to source the future care and support services and delegate authority for Contract Award to the Executive Director People Services.

The Cabinet Member for Adults and Health has approved the commencement of a procurement for care and support at home services, with contracting arrangements to commence from January 2021 and delegated authority for approval for contract award and any subsequent decisions and awards relating to these contracting arrangements to the Executive Director of Adults and Health.

The function of the nomination of school governors to maintained schools and academies is delegated to County Local Committees (CLCs).  CLCs are the means by which the County Council involves local residents in decision making in their local area.

It is within the remit of the CLCs to identify and nominate suitable persons to serve as school governors on behalf of the County Council within the CLCs area.

A recent review of CLCs concluded that, as there is no statutory requirement for the nomination of school governors to be approved by members, this function should instead be delegated to the Director of Education and Skills, in liaison with the local Member.

The Cabinet Member for Education and Skills has approved the delegation of the nomination of school governors to the Director of Education and Skills, in liaison with the relevant local Member.

46.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director of Law and Assurance (copy appended to the signed minutes) which proposed that a joint committee be established with Mid Sussex District Council to implement joint work on recycling projects.

46.2     The report was introduced by the Director of Law and Assurance, who advised that discussions were underway with a number of councils, and Mid Sussex District Council had come forward with a proposal for a project which meant that joint arrangements need to be in place as soon as possible. Other arrangements could be agreed with other councils at a later date. He clarified that the Cabinet Member for Environment would make an executive decision to delegate the relevant executive authority.

46.3     The Committee was supportive of the proposed arrangements and hoped that discussions with other councils would also be taken forward in due course.

46.4     Resolved – That the Director of Law and Assurance be authorised to prepare a constitution and terms of reference for a joint executive committee between the County Council and one or more district and borough councils for use in connections with inter authority partnership work on recycling projects for submission to the County Council for approval.

44.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director of Law and Assurance (copy appended to the signed minutes) which recommended that authority be delegated to the Director to update the constitution to take account of the provisions of primary legislation connected with the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union.

44.2     Resolved – That the County Council be recommended to confirm that authority be delegated to the Director of Law and Assurance to make any changes to the Council’s Constitution, policies and guidance documents to reflect changes in legislation arising from the UK’s withdrawal from the EU and to agree and settle changes to any other affected legal instrument or agreement to which the County Council is or will become a party.

41.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director of Law and Assurance (copy appended to the signed minutes) which recommended minor changes to Standing Orders relating to County Council meetings.

41.2     The Director of Law and Assurance introduced the report, advising that it was recommended that the method by which a Cabinet Member provides his or her response to a motion to the public be changed from a formal decision to a report to be published in the Bulletin. In response to the increasing pressure in the organisation, he proposed that the deadline for the submission of written questions for reply at County Council meetings be moved earlier by one working day, usually 9.00 a.m. on the Friday before a Council meeting.

41.3     The Committee was supportive of changing the response to the motion process but discussed the impact of changing the deadline for written questions. It was agreed that 12.00 noon on the Friday before Council would have less of an impact on members be recommended.

41.4     Resolved –

(1)        That County Council on 14 February 2020 be recommended to change Standing Order 2.53(b) so that the Cabinet Member’s response to a motion referral be published in the Bulletin rather than via an executive decision.

(2)        That County Council on 14 February 2020 be recommended to change Standing Order 2.39 to change the written question deadline to 12.00 noon on the fifth working day before the meeting.

42.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director of Finance and Support Services (copy appended to the signed minutes), which recommended minor changes to the terms of reference of the Pensions Panel, Pension Advisory Board and Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee.

42.2     The Committee supported that proposed changes as clarifications of roles and commented that the term ‘Pensions Panel’ should be reviewed as the term ‘Panel’ implied that it was not a decision-making body.

42.3     Resolved –

(1)        That the County Council on 14 February 2020 be recommended to approve the changes to Part 3 of the Constitution as set out in the report.

(2)        That the Director of Law and Assurance be authorised to revise the scheme of officer delegation to reflect the most up to date and accurate list of employer responsibilities.

43.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director of Human Resources and Organisational Change (copy appended to the signed minutes) which sought to update the Pay Policy Statement to take into account annual changes and minor changes to reflect the appointment of a joint Chief Executive.

43.2     The Committee supported the proposed changes to the existing scheme but asked for a report to be prepared for a future meeting of the Committee to give detail on paragraph 10.1, the arrangements for decisions on severance payments for senior officers.

43.3     Resolved –

(1)        That the County Council on 14 February 2020 be recommended to approve the proposed revisions to the Pay Policy Statement, as set out in appendix 1.

(2)        That a report be submitted to the Committee on the process for severance payments for senior officers set out in paragraph 10.1 of the statement.

40.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director of Law and Assurance (copy appended to the signed minutes) which proposed options for achieving savings to offset some of the costs of a new Fire and Rescue Service Scrutiny Committee.

40.2     The Director of Law and Assurance introduced the report, advising that options were given for merging the Planning and Rights of Way Committees, or to merge the chairmanship, in line with the suggestions of the Scrutiny Review Group.

40.3     At the invitation of the Chairman, Mr Whittington addressed the Committee as Chairman of the Rights of Way Committee. He reported that the work of the Chairman of Rights of Way Committee was significant between meetings and benefitted from specialist knowledge, so in reality created a higher workload than might be expected from a Committee which met two or three times a year.

40.4     At the invitation of the Chairman, Mr High addressed the Committee as Chairman of the Planning Committee. He highlighted that Planning Committee had a high workload and a distinct mode of operation, such as site visits. He hoped that more consideration would be given to the potential impact of a merger other than the financial benefit.

40.5     The Committee noted that many other councils had merged their planning and rights of way committees, but wished to have a better understanding of the practical impact of the proposed options and also questioned what other alternative options might be available for offsetting the costs of the new Committee.

40.6     Dr Walsh, seconded by Mr Jones, proposed that option 1, to merge the committees, be endorsed for recommendation to the County Council. The proposal was lost.

40.7     Mr Marshall, seconded by Mr Bradbury, proposed that a decision be deferred until a more qualitative review of impact on functions and a quantification of alternative options to make savings in the Democratic Services budget be provided. The proposal was agreed.

40.8     Resolved – That decision on options be deferred until the Committee receives a further report giving more qualitative review of the impact on functions and a quantification of alternative options to make savings in the Democratic Services budget.

The County Council currently commissions accommodation based support for adults affected by alcohol and drug misuse. There are two current contracts which end 31 March 2021 with no option to extend.

Authorisation is sought to commence a procurement process to secure provision and a new service which will be effective from 1 April 2021.

Objectives of the service are:

•       To maintain substance misuse recovery, and sustainable independent living

•       Reduction in drug and alcohol related harm. Contributes to Public Health Outcome Framework (Phof) indicators.

•       Improvement in the stability of people’s accommodation

•       Improvement in physical and mental health and wellbeing

•       Improvement in social, family and community networks

•       Increased engagement with education, training, volunteering and employment

•       Reduction in offending and anti-social behaviour

Activity will fit with the wider Prevention Strategy of West Sussex County Council, looking to support individuals with alcohol related difficulties earlier in their drinking history, and to prevent escalation of substance use related problems. An expected benefit will be an increase in local access to community settings for alcohol assisted withdrawal programmes.

Activity will support efforts to reduce risks of drug related deaths and reduce the numbers of drug deaths in treatment (an area of focus, working with Public Health England) and a priority of the Safer West Sussex Partnership Board.

The contract will run for a period of four (4) years with the possibility of a further extension for up to two (2) years built into the terms of the contract. The total value of the contract funded through the public health grant, is approximately £2.10M (including extension period). There are additional income streams from Housing Benefit revenue (majority contributor) and from District and Borough Councils.

The Cabinet Member for Adults and Health has approved;

1)   the commencement of a procurement process to secure the provision of Accommodation Based Support for Alcohol/Drug Recovery for the population of West Sussex. A new service will be effective from 1 April 2021; and

2)   the delegation of authority to the Director of Public Health to award the contract, following completion of the procurement process, for an initial period of 4 years with the option for an extension of an additional 2 years.