Decisions

West Sussex County Council (WSCC) commissions the provision of care and support at seventeen Extra Care schemes in West Sussex. Extra Care schemes combine accommodation with care and support services. Schemes are varied in their offer with many providing onsite communal facilities such as a restaurant, health and beauty rooms, gardens and activity rooms. All have an onsite care team which provide both planned calls and a 24/7 emergency response.

It is intended that arrangements are put in place to extend the existing care and support service contracts to ensure that they are coterminous. A full procurement process to reprocure these services will then follow at the end of the extended term.

The Cabinet Member for Adults Services has approved;

1)   Extra Care recommissioning as outlined in section 2 of this report; and

2)   the extension of the current Dynamic Purchasing System for Extra Care    for a further two years up to and including 30 September 2027.

From April 2024 the functions of Local Enterprise Partnerships, including responsibility for strategic economic planning, transferred to Mayoral Combined Authorities and upper tier local authorities, including West Sussex County Council. The County Council is now accountable to government for the development of a new West Sussex Economic Strategy.

The West Sussex Economic Strategy will be a strategic, over-arching document for West Sussex for the period 2025 – 2035. The ten-year time frame is required by the Government. The strategy will set out the national, county, and local context, including economic insight and evidence. It will highlight the economic assets and strengths of West Sussex that provide significant opportunities. It will identify an overall vision to 2035 and five key ambitions with strategic priorities to drive them forward. It also sets out how the strategy will be overseen and led, and how it will be monitored and evaluated.

The strategy will be consistent with Our Council Plan and supports the priorities of a sustainable and prosperous economy, helping people and communities to fulfil their potential, and making the best use of resources, underpinned by protecting the environment. The West Sussex Economic Strategy will provide the framework for the County Council’s economic development interventions. The new strategy will also align with other strategies such as the West Sussex Transport Plan, where appropriate.

The Leader will be asked to adopt the West Sussex Economic Strategy.

Following consideration of the report the Cabinet agreed to adopt the West Sussex Economic Strategy 2025-2035.

The call-in deadline is 20 March 2025.

The Performance and Resources Report (PRR) details the Council’s position in relation to revenue and capital spending, budget planning, workforce projections, performance and risk management by portfolio against the County Council’s priorities. The Leader, Cabinet Member for Finance & Property, or Cabinet will be recommended to approve the PRR and any decisions required in relation to budget (revenue or capital), resources and performance management.

Following consideration of the report the Cabinet agreed the allocation of £2.012m from the Contingency Budget to Service Portfolio Budgets to fund the nationally agreed £1,290 pay award for NJC staff from April 2024.

The call-in deadline is 20 March 2025.

Transport for the South East (TfSE) is the sub-national transport body, currently operating in shadow form, that covers Berkshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, Kent, Surrey, and West Sussex.  It has the twin purposes of facilitating the delivery of a regional transport strategy and promoting economic growth in the region.

In 2020, TfSE approved a Transport Strategy for the South East, which aimed to shape the South East as a region economically, technologically and environmentally over 30 years, and change the way that investment is made in transport.  Since then, significant changes have been made to national and local policy (such as the introduction of the Transport Decarbonisation Plan and local plans) and patterns of travel behaviour have changed due, in part, to the effects of leaving the EU and the COVID-19 Pandemic.  For these reasons, TfSE is refreshing its Strategy using an updated evidence base.

Although the updated Strategy will inform future decision-making by the County Council, as it will set out a regional strategy and priorities to guide investment in strategic transport, it is not expected to address every local issue.

The Draft Transport Strategy is being published for consultation with constituent authorities, including the County Council, and wider stakeholders between December 2024 and March 2025.

The Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport will be asked to approve the County Council’s response to the consultation.

The Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport approves the County Council’s Consultation Response (Appendix A) for submission to Transport for the South East.