Future of care homes
The future of Warwickshire County Council’s ten residential care homes for older people will go under the spotlight following an in depth consultation with residents and their families.
Today (Monday 24 January) the Council’s Adult Social Care and Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee will examine feedback and analysis from a five month consultation and consider the proposals that have been developed to modernise the service, before formal recommendations are put before the Council’s decision-making Cabinet on Thursday 27 January.
Councillor Les Caborn, Chair of the Adult Social Care and Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee, said: “The role of our Committee is to scrutinise and provide a critical friend challenge to the Cabinet, to ensure that the decisions and policies it makes are the most appropriate for Warwickshire’s residents. The review into the Council’s social care service and plans for modernisation is inevitably an issue of local concern, which is why the Committee have considered it a priority for open and transparent scrutiny. The Committee will hold a full and thorough debate on the proposals before we put our views forward to Cabinet. In considering the proposals our focus will be on ensuring that the provision of social care meets the needs of older people now and in the future.”
The consultation on the future of the council’s residential care homes was held as part of a wider strategy to modernise services within future budget allocations so that older people can live more independently in the future. Reduced demand, as more people choose to live in their own homes for as long as possible, and high running costs of 40% more than the independent sector contributed to a major review of Warwickshire’s local authority care home provision.
Councillor Izzi Seccombe, Portfolio Holder for Adult, Health and Community Services, said: “As we face significant budgetary pressures, we have to take a serious look at our adult social care model to meet the expectations of our older population in the 21st Century. That means using our money as effectively as possible and investing in flexible, modern services that offer a wider number of vulnerable people independence and quality of life. The costs of our internal provision are unsustainable, especially when quality services can be provided more efficiently in the external market.”
An original three-month consultation was launched to examine the possible impact on residents if some or all of the homes were to close. However the consultation was extended to five months to look at other emerging options. Four other recommendations have now been identified:
a) selling the care homes as “going concerns” to the independent sector
b) setting up a joint venture company between the council and an independent provider to operate the care homes
c) social enterprise or local community co-operatives running care homes
d) exploring the potential to work with health on a new joint solution for provision in Shipston
Cabinet members will consider a report on the consultation findings and will be asked to approve a procurement process to invite expressions of interest in options a, b, and c to see if sale, joint venture or social enterprise can deliver efficiencies while maintaining a high quality service.
If however, the procurement process described above is unsuccessful the council will have to commence a closure plan which will involve working closely with residents and their families to transfer to alternative private sector homes or extra care housing where appropriate. The council has guaranteed that it will continue to pay for residential beds for those who are eligible.
Due to the severity of the financial pressures facing adult social care, cabinet members will also be asked to approve a priority schedule of closure. As part of the proposals, officers would start planning the first two closures on the schedule for Mayfield in Bedworth and Abbotsbury in Rugby. The welfare of and care needs of residents will be paramount during this process and the council is committed to continuing to provide residential care to current customers. The charges for current customers will be determined in the same way, so customers will not face higher fees.
Demand for places at Mayfield has declined over the past few years and in early 2010, the ground floor of the home was closed due to low occupancy (of only 42%). The high cost of running the home, along with strong availability of alternative places in the local area, has placed Mayfield as the first home identified for closure.
Abbotsbury has been identified as the second home proposed for closure as there are a number of opportunities to re-provide residential places in care homes in the local area in addition to a new extra care housing scheme opening in April 2011. Abbotsbury also has low long-term occupancy levels as the majority of places are used for short-term placements and assessment. As well as supporting long-term residents, council staff will review services for eligible day care and respite customers to ensure that they, and their carers, are helped with efficient alternative provision.
Cllr Izzi Seccombe, Portfolio Holder for Adult, Health and Community Services, said: "We understand that our care home residents will be concerned and that is why we will continue to work closely with them during this process. Before any final arrangements are made we will take into full consideration the welfare and care needs of older people."
Wendy Fabbro, Strategic Director of Adult, Heath and Community Services, added: "In the current economic climate, adult social care has to make £22 million of savings over the next three years. We have to ensure we are delivering cost-effective services and it is not sustainable to continue as providers. The majority of residential care home places in Warwickshire are run by the voluntary and private care sector and we know that the capacity and quality exists in the external market."
Background
The vast majority of care homes in Warwickshire are provided by the independent sector which is in line with the national trend where in-house care homes represent less than 10% of the market – a figure which continues to fall.
Warwickshire County Council runs ten residential homes, most of which were constructed more than 30 years ago. Since the care homes were built, there has been a major shift in the way that older people choose to live in later life with the vast majority wanting to live in their own homes for as long as possible.
The council has already been working with partners to develop extra care housing schemes where older people have the privacy of their own apartment but with the option of 24 hour care, and communal facilities, as and when required.
The council is also developing a number of its home-based services including telecare (i.e. using assistive technology to maintain people in their own homes or a home environment), adaptations which are improvements to existing homes such as installing ramps etc, and the use of reablement (or recovery) services which help older people to regain their independence in their own homes after an illness or a hospital stay to minimise the need for intensive long-term and residential care.