Agenda item

      Report of the Chief Executive

Cllr Jane Davies, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, SEND and Inclusion presented the report which outlined the statutory obligation of a local authority to provide an independent Advocacy Service for adults.

The Cabinet Member commented on the Council’s contract spend for the current Whole Life Advocacy Service and unbudgeted spend for advocates to meet referral need as demand increases. Cllr Laura Mayes, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, Education and Skills explained that an Advocacy Service for children and young people would be delivered separately to the Adult Service using a tailored approach that is more appropriate.  

Cabinet noted that young people and adults have been engaged, along with professionals who refer into the Advocacy Service, in the co-design of the specification. It was also noted that an essential element to be provided by the Service is Peer Advocacy and the promotion of Self-Advocacy enabling people to develop skills to potentially self-advocate in the future.

The Leader reported that he was comfortable with assurances from the Cabinet Member about the process to recommission the Service and highlighted that there was a need to focus on prevention and aim for people to receive a level of independence through Self-Advocacy.  He expressed a concern at the loss of the Integrated Care Board contribution towards the Generic element of the Service and children’s budget used to implement an In-House Advocacy Service for Children and Young People.

Cllr Johnny Kidney, Chair of the Health Select Committee, reported that he and Cllr Gordon King, Vice-Chair of the Health Select Committee received a briefing on 15 January 2024. It was noted that they explored a number of areas during the briefing which included the reasons why adults and children were being commissioned separately and an understanding where the demand lay between statutory and non-statutory services. There were also some areas of on-going concern that would be included in the Select Committee Forward Plan for consideration at future Select Committee meetings.

Resolved:

1)             To agree the procurement and award of an independent Advocacy Service for Adults, to focus on Statutory advocacy.

2)             To agree the development of a Service Specification for a commissioned supplier to deliver a Statutory Advocacy Service for Adults, which is informed by the views of people who have accessed advocacy, or who may access advocacy in the future, and the people who support them, together with those professionals, stakeholders and funding partners, who refer people for advocacy services.

3)             The decision to award an Adults Advocacy Service contract is delegated to the Director of Commissioning, by the Corporate Director for Resources & Deputy Chief Executive in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, SEND and Inclusion,

4)             The decision how to deliver the Advocacy Service for Children and Young People is delegated to the Corporate Director of People, in consultation with the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, Education and Skills, to include either an in-house or commissioned service and the decision to award such a service.

Reasons for Decision:

The purpose of this paper is to provide an update to Cabinet on the status of the Council’s contracted Whole Life Advocacy Service which is delivered by an external Advocacy Supplier and which expires on 30/06/2024.

The current contract delivers a Whole Life Advocacy Service to children, young people and adults and delivers both Statutory and Generic Advocacy.

The provision of an independent Advocacy Service fulfils the Council’s statutory obligations. Therefore, a recommissioned Advocacy Service should be in place from 01/07/2024.

The procuring of an independent Advocacy Supplier to deliver Statutory Advocacy for Adults under a procurement process will ensure that a contract is awarded to a Supplier who has been vetted to ensure they adhere to legal and quality standards together with financial parameters and ensures continuity of service for residents.