Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Ian Thorn represented by Ruth Hopkinson

To confirm and sign the minutes of the Cabinet meeting held on 24 April 2018, previously circulated.

The minutes of the meeting held on 24 April 2018 were presented.

Resolved

To approve as a correct record and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 24 April 2018

To receive any declarations of disclosable interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

The Council welcomes contributions from members of the public.This meeting is open to the public, who may ask a question or make a statement. Questions may also be asked by members of the Council.  Written notice of questions or statements should be given to William Oulton of Democratic Services by 12.00 noon on Wednesday 9 May 2018. Anyone wishing to ask a question or make a statement should contact the officer named above.

The Leader outlined the approach taken to public participation encouraging representations to be made under the item for debate. There were no representations made from members of the public regarding items not on the agenda.

Councillor Jerry Wickham stated, in response to a question from Councillor Gordon King regarding the recent ombudsman report, his regret and that the council had apologised. He also noted that a report would be coming to the Cabinet in July and that this would be available to the public.

 Report by Terrence Herbert, Corporate Director

Councillor Laura Mayes presented the report which: provided an update on the work done, and being undertaken to secure the future of special school provision in Wiltshire; sought to confirm the next steps in relation to setting out parameters for development, securing capital funding and progressing change; and sought to confirm authority for preliminary consultation on the future pattern of Wiltshire special schools in the context of its 2015-18 Special Educational Needs (SEN/SEND) Strategy.

In making her presentation, Councillor Mayes emphasised that no decision had yet been made regarding a preferred options or options, and that the results of the consultation would be reported to Cabinet in September.

At the invitation of the Leader, Councillor Jon Hubbard, in his capacity as Chair of the Children’s Select Committee presented the interim report of the task group. He outlined the extensive work undertaken the group, drawing particular attention to recommendation one and the need for a strategy for SEND across the whole county. He also thanked officer, stakeholders and councillors for their contribution and engagement in the review, and specifically praised the contribution from the two co-opted members John Hawkins and Jen Jones.

Further matters highlighted in the course of the presentation and debate included: the progress made in the review since the meeting in November; the vision in Wiltshire for Special Education and the focus on providing the most equitable and best outcome; the additional places required to meet demand; the imbalance between the north and the south of the county; the decisions already made to amend provision and the further options to require continued consultation; the good engagement from schools and parents in the review.

Representations were received from the following members of the public.

Stuart Hall, from the Wiltshire Parent Carers Council, stated that: thanked the council for their commitment and for the work undertaken to address the shortage; recognised that feedback from parents had been taken into account and welcomed the collaborative approach being developed; expressed  concern over the lack of places for those with needs; stated that specialist provision, within a mainstream setting, is sometimes preferred so that children stay closer to their families and communities; expressed the desire to see more integrated therapies; that investment in the right staff and equipment was important; the desire to involve families in the design of new facilities; expressed disappointed that progress has not been as swift as desired, but welcomed the opportunity to meet the aspirations for the education.

Mike Loveridge, Headteacher Rowdeford Schoo, stated that: he was pleased with the progress that has been made and encouraged by many of the proposals; that some recommendations would enable special schools to share best practice with mainstream schools; expressed concern that Rowdeford had been marginalised in the proposed solutions; emphasised the work undertaken to extend the provision and develop its approach for providing an enhanced environment; the importance of good environments on mental health; and emphasised that barriers for development could be overcome.

Phil Cook, Headteacher Larkrise School  ...  view the full minutes text for item 232.

 Report by Alistair Cunningham, Corporate Director

Councillor Toby Sturgis presented the report which: provided an update on the outcome of the formal consultation on the ‘Wiltshire Housing Site Allocations Plan - Pre-submission draft plan (June 2017)’; sought Cabinet’s  recommendation to Council that the Plan, together with the schedule of Proposed Changes, should be approved for the purposes of submission to the Secretary of State and commencement of the independent Examination process; and sought delegated authority to make appropriate arrangements for submitting the prescribed documents and supporting materials to the Secretary of State; and respond to any consequential actions as directed by the Inspector relating to the Examination.

Matters highlighted in the course of the presentation and debate included: how the plans fit with the core strategy; the need to submit evidence of a five year housing land supply; the national policy context and the drive from central government to encourage more housebuilding; the formal and informal consultations already undertaken and the decision of Cabinet already made; the need to submit the plan to the Secretary of State to commence the independent examination by an inspector (with examination in public in the autumn), and that a final decision would be made by Council following recommendations of the inspector examining the plan; the changes that have been made as a result of consultation and assessments; how changes in national policy on issues such as density had been taken into account; the comprehensive nature of the evidence; that some settlements had not been included as they had already met their housing allocation; that around 3000 comments had been taken into account; the difficulty in balancing the needs of national policy and housing demand and neighbourhood plans, and the respective weight that can be given in decisions; the assistance the council can give to supporting those plans in their development; that every objection and representation will be sent to the Secretary of State that will be considered by the inspector; and that the secretary of state can take action if a sound plan is not in place.

The Leader drew attention to the questions and statements responded to in the supplement, and gave those in attendance an opportunity to present further questions and statements.

The Leader stated, in response to specific concerns raised by Graham Hill, that she would ask officers to meet with him to seek to address the issues he had raised in his complaint.

The Leader stated, in response to a supplementary question from Geoff Whiffen, that the Cabinet represented the county as a whole and that it was not practical to have representatives from every community on there, but emphasised that views from all communities are listened to; and that a written response would be given as to the breakdown of support and objection to the specific site mentioned.

Councillor Sturgis, in response to a question from David Goodship, that a distinction had to made between matters to be dealt with as a matter of policy/strategy and those which would be dealt with  ...  view the full minutes text for item 233.

 Report by Dr Carlton Brand, Corporate Director

Councillor Jerry Wickham presented the report which requested approval to award the following contracts, under an exemption, to the incumbent providers, Mears Care, Somerset Care at Home, Salisbury City Almshouse, Knightstone, Habinteg Housing, Stonewater Housing, as outlined in the report; and requested that Cabinet delegates authority to the Corporate Director with responsibility for Adult Care to approve the award of contracts within the approved budget.

Councillor Wickham stated, in response to Brian Warwick, that the extensions would be for 12-18 months to provide continuity and to allow more time to undertake proper consultation with users to come back with further recommendations.

Councillor Graham Wright and Councillor Gavin Grant stated that the Health Select Committee had been informed of the proposals, which had received broad support, and that further input from the Select Committee would be welcome once further proposals had been developed.

Resolved

1)     To award the following contracts, under an exemption, to the incumbent providers, Mears Care, Somerset Care at Home, Salisbury City Almshouse, Knightstone, Habinteg Housing, Stonewater Housing:

·           Extra Care Housing: care and support contracts for 4 existing ECH schemes

·           Housing Related Support: 8 contracts for sheltered housing schemes across Wiltshire (covered by the Help to Live at Home (HTLAH) providers)

·           Housing Related Support: 4 additional schemes with individual agreements (outside of HTLAH)

2)     To delegate authority to the Corporate Director with responsibility for Adult Care to approve the award of contracts within the approved budget

Reason for Decisions:

As part of the Adult Social Care Transformation programme the Council is

changing the way it commissions domiciliary care. Notice has been given on

the current HTLAH block contracts with a new type of contract being tendered

in May 2018.

The HTLAH block contracts also cover the following service provisions:

• Care and Support for 4 Extra Care Housing Schemes
• Housing Related Support

These services are distinct from the domiciliary care services and there is

potential to reshape them to provide better outcomes for customers and better

value for the Council. This will need to be undertaken as a separate piece of

work to the domiciliary care tender and it is important that during this time the

current service is maintained to give customers consistent support.