Issue details

Proposed Decision:

a)    APPROVE the additional expenditure of £400,000 across the contract period  for the Parent Infant Mental Health Service from the DfE Family Hub Grant and Public Health Grant to support venue costs.

b)   DELEGATE authority to the Director of Public Health, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health, to exercise the additional expenditure and enter into relevant contracts or legal agreements; and

c)    DELEGATE authority to the Director of Public Health, to take other necessary actions, including but not limited to allocating resources, expenditure, and entering into contracts and other legal agreements, as required to implement the decision

Background:

On 4 October 2022 the Cabinet Member for Integrated Children’s Services took an executive decision (Decision number  22/00094 )to adopt the principle of Kent becoming a?Family Hub Transformation Authority.

On 24 October 2023 a further decision 23/00075 by the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health was taken to:

(a)  APPROVE the development and improvement activity to deliver Perinatal Mental Health and Parent Infant Relationships Interventions; and

(b)  APPROVE the required expenditure, via the Family Hub Grant Funding (£3,051,809 – expires 2025) and, subject to evaluation and availability of funds the Public Health Grant (post March 2025), to deliver and sustain this activity for up to two years beyond the Family Hub Grant period – total service period – 2023 – 2025 with the potential for two x 1-year extensions.

On 21 March 2025, a further decision 25/00012, was taken by the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health to:

(a)  APPROVE the development of Parent Infant Mental Health Service for a period of 31 months and subject to evaluation and availability of funds from the Public Health Grant an extension for a further 24 months; and

(b)  APPROVE the expenditure £2,059,928 funded via the Family Hub Grant initially and then the Public Health Grant

(c)  DELEGATE authority to the Director of Public Health, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health, to exercise relevant contract extensions and enter into relevant contracts or legal agreements; and

Proposed Decision:

An additional non-key decision is being sought to APPROVE the additional expenditure of £400,000 across the contract period from the DfE Family Hub Grant and Public Health Grant to support venue costs associated with the delivery of services.

This expenditure was not included in the scope of the previous key decision and is required to ensure full delivery of the commissioned activity.

Reason for Decision:

Feedback from market engagement in April 2025 identified that additional funding for venues costs are needed to the current budget of (£2,059,928) as relying on having consistent access to bookable spaces in Family Hubs would not be operational practical or feasible for the Parent Infant Mental Health Service.

A non-key decision is needed to reflect the additional funding for venues costs. The financial budget including venue costs is £2,459,928

A PSR (Provider Selection Regime) compliant procurement process is proposed, taking into account feedback from suppliers.

How the proposed decision meets the priorities of New Models of Care and Support as set out in ‘‘Framing Kent’s Future – Our Council Strategy 2022 – 2026’’

This service will contribute to ‘Priority 1: Levelling up Kent’ of the Framing Kent’s Future Our Council Strategy 2022-2026’ as providing additional support for families at the start of their infant’s life which is a preventative approach to improve the populations health and narrowing health inequalities.

How the proposed decision supports Securing Kent’s Future

The Parent Infant Mental Health Service supports the Council to achieve the priorities set out in Securing Kent’s Future, by embedding a preventative approach and ensuring children get the best start in life and better outcomes in adult life, leading to reduced demand and costs in Health and Social Care.