Agenda item

This report highlights our extensive work towards the priorities set out in the short breaks sufficiency strategy which were developed to ensure compliance, efficiency and financial oversight of short breaks in Medway.

Discussion:

The Committee received an update report on the work undertaken towards the priorities of the Short Breaks Sufficiency Strategy.

The team had worked closely with the Medway Parent and Carer Forum in co-production and consultation on driving forward aspects of the priorities.

Members were provided with additional information which included:

In quarter three, October to December 2024, the Rocks short breaks service at Rivermead School supported 176 young people, 30 families at 700 sessions. This was a significant increase on the previous period. Reports and feedback from families had been positive.

The five residential apprenticeships were now in place to work at parklands, Eden House, or the Rock. All the young people were from a variety of backgrounds and keen to develop their careers.

Members then raised several questions and comments:

Clarification was sought on figures in the report that stated that £200,000 savings to be invested back into short breaks, and table two stated that larger figures of capital was needed for the service in future years.

The Committee was informed that that services had been streamlined to address issues and bring in efficiencies which had resulted in savings. There had since been a central agreement that there would be a need for investment in the short term which would result in a cost effective service in the longer term.

Access to short breaks - it was commented that access to short breaks could be bureaucratic, and it was important to ensure that it complied with and fulfilled its obligations which was to keep families together. Additionally, there were issues with recruitment of Personal Assistants due to the amount they were allowed to charge. It would be more beneficial if family members could be PA’s as they could better meet the needs of the child and should be compensated through payment for their time. Members were informed that previously there had been no definitive criteria for applications for short breaks, officers had been making their own decisions and this had highlighted a need for standardization and as a result there was now an escalation route built into the process for cases that did not meet the criteria. The criteria developed was robust as possible to ensure fairness across the service with the ability for exceptions to be made in some circumstances.

In response to a further question on what measures were in place to ensure that the system would not be abused, the Committee was informed that there were processes in place including an annual audit and review.

Backlog - it was asked if the resources that were being put in place would clear the backlog and what the time frame would be from receipt of application to award of respite. Officers were confident that the additional 1.4FTE would be sufficient to assist the wider team in the clearance of the backlog. It was difficult at this stage to determine how long the process would take as it would depend on individual cases and whether there was missing information at the time of submission of an application. An average could be provided as an update to the Committee upon clearance of backlogs.

Decision:

a)    The Committee noted compliance with short breaks legislation in production of a short break services statement, and significant improvements in how we interact and communicate with disabled children and their families.

b)    The Committee noted the plans to increase availability of inclusive universal services through comprehensive training, workforce development and stakeholder engagement.

c)    The Committee noted the external investment into developing and expanding short break provision at ROCC and in the community.

d)    The Committee noted the commitment to ensuring our provisions are appropriately resourced by filling the local offer officer position, acquiring new staff for the children’s short break team (1.4FTE) and 5 apprentices who will are being trained to work in children’s residential settings.

e)    The Committee noted the changes to the short break grant scheme and associated changes to internal process that will improve experiences and outcomes for our customers, as well as delivering savings up to £200,000.