Minutes:
1. The Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health, Mr Dan Watkins, gave a verbal update on the following
Carers Rights Day – Mr Watkins noted that 23 November 2023 marked Carers Rights Day and the Council would be celebrating the work of unpaid carers and highlighting support available to them. It was said that the work of unpaid carers can have a major impact on paid employment and leisure activities and that Kent had over 150,000 adults over the age of 16 providing unpaid care each week. Mr Watkins said the Council had a 5-year plan to work with partners to improve the experience of unpaid carers. The Cabinet Member said that he had recently visited Crossroads Care Kent which provided local carers respite and a helpline. Mr Watkins expressed his and the committee's appreciation for the work of unpaid carers in Kent.
Vaccinations – The Council was supporting a nationwide campaign encouraging all those eligible to come forward for their seasonal flu and COVID-19 vaccinations. This winter over 11.7 million flu jabs and 9 million Covid-19 jabs had been delivered by the NHS since September 2023.
Charging Policy – Mr Watkins noted that there would be a review of the charging policy for those in receipt of non-residential services. The findings were expected to be presented at the January 18 2024 meeting of the committee.
Adult Social Care Pressures – Mr Watkins had recorded a BBC South East podcast on the adult social care pressures and challenges in Kent and how the Council plans to address them. BBC South East also visited the Hospital Base Technology Facilitators Service, which helped to get people back home safely after discharge from hospital. Mr Watkins said that he hoped that the publicity generated would lead to additional support from the central Government.
All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Digital Skills – Mr Watkins spoke at the APPG on empowering the UK health workforce through digital innovations concerning the work going on in Kent on the digital rollout.
World Mental Health Day – Mr Watkins said that to mark the occasion on the 10 October 2023 the Council had given grants to community groups of between £500 and £15,000.
Kent and Medway Health and Care Symposium – Mr Watkins said he had attended the event on 20 October 2023 which was an opportunity for health and care partners from across the county to come together and discuss progress on the Integrated Care System and generate new ideas.
Blackburn Lodge – The Cabinet Member informed the committee that an emergency closure had to be enforced at the site in Sheerness following high concentrations of iron found in the water supply. To ensure the health and safety of the 13 residents they were transferred to alternative residential care homes. Mr Watkins said he noted the disruption this had caused the residents and their families and he thanked the staff who helped to safely and effectively manage the transition. Officers were considering the future of Blackburn Lodge and a decision would be made in due course.
Care Sector Digital Event – Mr Watkins and officers attended the event hosted by KCC, Medway Council and the Kent & Medway Integrated Care Board (ICB) on 8 October 2023. The event aimed to help care providers adopt digital technology and services to improve care for service users. It was noted that 180 providers attended the event which covered both national and local schemes and innovations. KCC’s Technology Enabled Lives programme was demonstrated at the event and launched in November 2023.
2. In response to comments and questions, it was said:
(a) Mr Whiting asked if the Cabinet Member would reassure residents in his division that Blackburn Lodge would reopen once the health and safety issues were resolved. It was noted that the emergency closure had been a traumatic experience for residents and those who received daycare services as there was a lack of local alternatives in the area. It was asked when the reports into Blackburn Lodge would be ready to reassure both the site’s users and the staff. Mr Watkins thanked Mr Whiting for his question and that he understood how distressing it must be for the community. It was said that the reports would be ready as soon as possible to limit uncertainty, it was hoped it would be weeks rather than months. It was said that his team were looking at increasing capacity in Sheppey for daycare services and was working with the AGE UK facility and other smaller providers to increase care provision. Jim Beale said that officers were actively working with community teams to urgently look at the provision of daycare in Sheppey. It was also noted that Human Resources teams were working with the staff affected to support them.
(b) A Member suggested that a briefing for all Council Members on the digital technologies available to support care would be welcomed. Mr Watkins agreed and would attempt to hold a presentation at a meeting of the full Council.
(c) It was said by a Member that the support for unpaid carers did not go far enough and it was noted that currently unpaid carers had to work 35 hours to be entitled to receive £76.75 the equivalent of £2.19 per hour. With opportunities for paid employment limited this put great pressure on unpaid carers in the cost-of-living crisis and increased the risk of poor health outcomes and social isolation. The Member asked if the Leader of the Council would lobby the central government to increase the payment given to unpaid carers due to the value of their work and the recent increase to the minimum wage. Mr Watkins welcomed the suggestion and said that he would speak to the Leader about this issue.
3. The Corporate Director for Adult Social Care, Mr Richard Smith, gave a verbal update on the following:
South East Senior Leaders meeting – Mr Smith had attended a meeting hosted by Amanda Pritchard, CEO of NHS England, that focussed on pressing issues across the South East.
System Flow Discharge Summit – At the summit, Mr Smith met with ICB colleagues to ensure that the right funding streams are used for the people of Kent following hospital discharge or discharge from mental health services. Another aim of the summit was to ensure that communication at a strategic level was effective.
KICA Kent Care Awards - It was noted that the annual event celebrated the work of frontline care staff.
Joint Session with Public Health – Mr Smith said that the first session had recently taken place where key issues that could be worked on collectively were discussed.
Westbrook and Westview Services - Mr Smith said that he and the CEO of the Community Health Care Trust had visited Westbrook and Westview Intermediate Care Services. They met with staff on how to improve collective working arrangements. It was noted that 50 staff had been trained on Home First Services, jointly funded by Public Health and Adult Social Care.
Hospital Discharge – After a visit from the national team adult social care received an additional grant to support discharge work by creating greater capacity across Kent and particularly in East Kent.
Budget Live Event – Mr Smith noted that he had met with frontline staff to engage with them after the budget situation and sought their ideas for how to work going forward.
4. In response to comments and questions, it was said.
(a) A Member asked for more detail about budget forecasting as there was a concern that in the last few years, it had not sufficiently identified the challenges and budget gaps witnessed today. Mr Smith said that the team had been aware of the challenges in the months before budget discussions but said he would be happy to discuss forecasting models outside the meeting. It was noted that forecasting was a very complex exercise and was a continuously ongoing process.
(b) A Member asked if the action points developed on hospital discharge could be shared with the committee. Mr Smith said that the world with the community mental health trusts and the community partners was seeing improvements in joint working to maximise the bed capacity at intermediate services and ensure that the right people go to the right beds. It was noted that much of the focus was on Home First and prevention to help reduce the number of individuals going into the hospital in the first place.