Agenda item

Report of Head of Quality and Efficiency

Jo Pettifor, Strategic Procurement Manager, presented the report of the Strategic Director for Early Intervention to the Sub-Committee. A project group has been working on a new service model, subject to consultation, with a view to procuring providers of residential and nursing care services in Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire County from April 2015.

RESOLVED to:

(1)  commission residential and nursing care services in Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire County from April 2015 in accordance with the proposed model and service specification set out in appendix 1 to the report;

(2)  undertake a joint accreditation process with NHS Nottingham City to procure providers of residential and nursing care services in the City and County approved to deliver these services from April 2015, with approved providers being awarded a joint contract with Nottingham City Council and NHS Nottingham City;

(3)  delegate authority to the Director of Early Intervention to approve the outcome of the accreditation process and confirm the providers that will be offered a contract as a result of this process;

(4)  agree the extension of existing contracts with providers of residential and nursing care services to 31 March 2015 in order to allow the proposed accreditation process to be undertaken;

(5)  delegate authority to the Head of Quality and Efficiency to sign contracts for residential and nursing care services;

(6)  note that approval to spend against these contracts falls within the Scheme of Delegation (reference 273), in part 2, section 9 of Nottingham City Council’s Constitution.

Reasons for Decision

(1)  The proposed service model and service specification for residential and nursing care services set out the core standards and service expectations for all provision in Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire County, including the adoption of a re-ablement focus where attainment of a greater degree of independence is realistic and attainable.

(2)  The proposal to undertake an accreditation process for residential and nursing care services will enable providers to be checked against set minimum standards prior to being awarded contracts and will provide information for the Council about providers to enable risk and performance to be managed once contracts are in place. The process will create an approved list of providers of residential and nursing care within Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire County which will support citizens and care management staff in selecting services. The proposed accreditation process will be the Council’s procurement process for residential and nursing care services in Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire County. The commitment of expenditure on placements made under these contracts is approved under the Council’s Constitution Part 2 – Responsibility for Functions, Section 9 – Scheme of Delegation, reference 273

(3)  The proposal to work jointly with NHS Nottingham City to undertake the accreditation process will streamline the contracting arrangements for these services, creating efficiencies for providers and commissioners. Additionally it will enable the responsibility for administering the process to be shared between the Council and City NHS.

(4)  Providers approved through the proposed accreditation process will be issued with a joint contract with Nottingham City Council and NHS Nottingham City, agreed by both commissioning parties and for which the Council will be the Lead Commissioner. 

(5)  The terms and requirements to be included in the proposed new contract and service specification are intended to drive greater consistency and quality in service provision, a better well equipped workforce and increased choice for citizens and carers. The contracts will enable contract compliance and service quality to be monitored to ensure that appropriate and safe care is delivered to citizens.  The contracts will have robust clauses to enable suspension or termination by the Council if the service does not meet the required standard.

(6)  The extension of the existing contracts with providers of residential and nursing care services to 31 March 2015 will enable continuity of existing services through contractual arrangements while the proposed accreditation process is completed The timescale for the implementation of the accreditation process has been revised to allow for the joint work with NHS Nottingham City and development of a joint contract. An extension by way of a variation of the contracts falls within the Council’s Constitution Part 2 – Responsibility for Functions, Section 9 – Scheme of Delegation, reference 17.

Other Options Considered

(1)  Do nothing. The current service model and specification require updating and the contracts currently in place for residential and nursing care services have not been awarded through any formal process. For this reason, this option was rejected.

(2)  Undertake a full competitive tendering process for residential and nursing care services. The Council wishes to contract with any provider that meets minimum standards as the choice of provider for each placement is made by individual citizens. The accreditation process which will be the Council’s procurement process for residential and nursing care services in Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire County will enable an approved list to be established based on minimum criteria being met. The process does not need to address pricing because fees for all residential and nursing care placements are set consistently based on a standard basic rate and the specific needs of citizens. A full competitive tendering process would be resource intensive for both the Council and providers, and would deliver no benefit in terms of value for money. For these reasons, this option was rejected.

(3)  Undertake an accreditation process and contract separately from NHS Nottingham City. This would not realise the benefits of streamlining commissioning and procurement processes across the commissioners and would result in duplication and increased bureaucracy for providers and commissioners. For this reason, this option was rejected.