Agenda item

Report of Director of Commissioning and Partnerships

Councillor Woodings, Portfolio Holder for Adult Social Care and Health, introduced the report.

Katy Ball, Director for Commissioning and Partnerships, presented the report, and stated the following:

(a)  Nottingham City Council was obliged to consider the fee rates it pays for its commissioned social care services, and in doing so to take account of a number of factors, within the context of the wider financial position of the Council;

(b)  Section 5 of the Care Act 2014 obliges Local Authorities to promote the efficient and effective operation of the market for adult social care as a whole, and they must have regard to the need for sufficient services to be available in the area and the importance of sustainability in this market, balanced against budget commitments and pressures for the Council;

(c)  it was proposed to consult with adult social care providers on the proposals during January – February 2023 and the Director of Commissioning and Partnerships, in consultation with the Director for Adult Health and Social Care, will take account of consultation responses and issue variations to existing contracts, reflective of the proposals, should no significant issues arise;

(d)  should the outcome of consultations require consideration of significant change to the shape and financial consequence of the proposals (with due regard given to the available budget), a further report will be presented through the appropriate governance process.

Resolved to

(1)  approve the fee rates for Adult Social Care Services in 2023/24, as outlined in the exempt appendices (subject to the correction as stated in the meeting), which will be consulted upon with service providers;

(2)  delegate authority to the Director of Commissioning and Partnerships, in consultation with the Director for Adult Health and Social Care, to agree fee rates in accordance with the exempt appendix, subject to the outcome of consultation with providers and in line with the Council budget, to be implemented from April 2023 subject to consultation and resolution 4 below;

(3)  approve the total spend of £10.133m, including approval to spend against high cost placement provision through the Council’s scheme of delegation for Adults Care Packages;

(4)  note that, if upon completion of consultation the financial impact of any revised proposals exceeds the budget available, further approval from this Committee would be sought.

Reasons for recommendations

(a)  Nottingham City Council is obliged to consider the fee rates it pays for its commissioned social care services, and in doing so to take account of a number of factors, within the context of the wider financial position of the Council.  Section 5 of the Care Act 2014 obliges Local Authorities to promote the efficient and effective operation of the market for adult social care as a whole. They must have regard to the need for sufficient services to be available in the area and the importance of sustainability in this market. This is balanced against budget commitments and pressures for the Council.

(b)  In accordance with the Council’s legal obligation, it is proposed to consult with adult social care providers on these proposals during January - February. The Director of Commissioning and Partnerships in consultation with the Director for Adult Health and Social Care will take account of consultation responses and issue variations to existing contracts reflective of the proposals in this report should no significant issue arise. Should the outcome of these consultations require consideration of significant change to the shape and financial consequence of these proposals (with due regard given to the available budget) a further report will be presented through the appropriate governance process.

(c)  These proposals and the associated financial modelling are based on information currently available about service utilisation and demand.

(d)  The recommendations presented take account of the implications of inflationary pressures on the adult social care market and aim to represent a fair allocation of funding and to support the market across all service areas. It is considered that a balanced, reasoned and informed approach has been taken and that the proposals seek to support a sustainable, efficient and effective market within the available resources.

Other options considered

(a)  Do nothing – the Council is contractually bound to review contract fee rates on an annual basis. Doing nothing would present a risk of legal challenge and for this reason, this option was rejected.

(b)  Offer different fee rate proposals. This option is not recommended as the proposals have resulted from significant work and modelling between finance and contracting, taking into account knowledge of the market and feedback from providers, and the overall budget pressures for Adult Social Care. The final proposals take account of the potential impact on service delivery and risk of market failure. Offering different fee rates would place further pressure on the Adult Social Care budget and this is not a feasible option.

(c)  To undertake analysis of individual provider costs and offer fee rates based on factors such as wage rates paid, pension contributions, profit and void levels etc. This option would not be feasible at this time as it would be administratively burdensome due to variations in rates of pay and other costs across the sector.