Agenda and draft minutes

In relation to Members of the Sub Committee, apologies for absence had been received from Councillor Paterson.

Apologies had been received from the Chair of the Kyndi Board, Peter Little, with Ros Adby attending to represent the Board.

Apologies had also been received from the Assistant Director – Adult Social Care, Jackie Brown, with Head of Adult Partnership Commissioning and the BCF, Su Irving, attending on her behalf and from the Chief Operating Officer, Phil Watts.

The record of the meeting held on 18 November 2025 was agreed by the Sub Committee and signed by the Chairperson as correct.

Disclosable pecuniary interests

There were none. 

Other significant interests (OSIs)

There were none.

Other interests

There were none.

The Chairperson had previously requested that a discussion take place at the meeting in relation to the possible impact of Local Government Reorganisation on the work of Kyndi. While she considered it might have been useful to have a discussion, in view of officer availability and that she had been advised that such discussions could be premature, this topic would not be considered during the meeting.

The Chairperson said that a contractual issue had been identified in relation to Kyndi. This issue was being worked on by Council officers and there would be a need for a contract covering the work undertaken by Kyndi on behalf of the Council to be considered by the Sub-Committee within the current calendar year. Kyndi’s work was currently covered by a Memorandum of Understanding, which was considered to be acceptable on an interim basis. The Assistant Director, Legal and Governance, would be asked to attend the next meeting with specific reference to the contractual situation.

There was an ongoing Parliamentary Commission into Adult Social Care. Colleagues were in touch with the Policy Connect think tank regarding recommendations made. A report considering assistive technology skills for Adult Social Care had also recently gone through Parliament. This had considered how to maintain people’s independence. Another important aspect was the use of assistive technology in relation to dementia. Consideration had been given to aligning the Strategic Plan with the targets set out in that report to ensure alignment with the national picture. There was also a need to ensure alignment with the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Green Paper and the White Paper for the NHS 10 Year Health Plan.

Background:

The report detailed key achievements and provided an overview of the progress made in quarter 3 of 2025/26 against the approved Kyndi Business Plan.

Key issues discussed included the following:

Real Time Bus Information – The installation of real time traffic information screens at the Bus Station in Chatham and other locations in Medway had been approved at Cabinet and work was progressing. There had been some positive feedback in relation to this initiative. Screens would eventually be rolled out across Medway. They were seen as being a contributor towards encouraging increased bus use locally.

Community Daycare – There were concerns about service provision in view of news received from an incumbent provider. A meeting was due to take place with this provider to discuss the situation and the future provision of daycare. It was suggested that there could be a role for Kyndi and that consideration needed to be given to this possibility.

Deep cleaning for care visits – Partial funding had been secured for a staff member to start on 7 April. Attempts were also made during visits to identify whether any family could assist, but where cleaning was required as part of reablement this could be put in place. Where service users cleaned for themselves this could be monitored as part of care visits. Protocols relating to hoarding had been amended as previously anyone demonstrating signs of hoarding behaviour had been considered a safeguarding concern, resulting in significant referrals.

Financial Management Support – Following the retirement of the Kyndi Chief Financial Officer, Kreston Reeves had been engaged to provide some interim support. This provision had been excellent and Kyndi would continue to use the firm for the next nine months.

Company finances – Turnover for the end of the financial year was forecast to be slightly less than budget with profit also slightly less than budget. Taking into account exceptional costs incurred during the year this was considered to be a positive result.

Leadership Programme – The Mid Kent College hosted Programme was progressing well and there had been positive networking activity.

Workforce development – A People Strategy had been produced to underpin the Strategic Plan. This included clear development plans for every person within the organisation who sought it and the provision of a training budget to cover this.

A member of staff would be joining following completion of their T levels at Canterbury College. It was considered important to highlight this success and to raise the profile of employment in the care sector with younger people. It was suggested that this success could be highlighted as part of the NEETS (Not in Employment, Education or Training) Conference due to take place on 30 April and it was suggested that a video could be produced to show at the Conference.

CCTV provision – Upgrades to CCTV cameras and the provision of additional cameras had been completed. This included cameras that could ‘talk’ and move every 20 seconds, which were making a significant impact. It was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.