To appoint a Chairperson for the meeting.

RESOLVED:            That in the absence of the Chairperson, Councillor PA Davies be elected Chairperson for the meeting.   

(Councillor PA Davies in the Chair)

To receive declarations of personal and prejudicial interest (if any) from Members/Officers in accordance with the provisions of the Members Code of Conduct adopted by Council from 1 September 2008 (including Whipping Declarations)

The following Declaration of Interest was made:

Councillor N Farr – declared a personal interest in agenda item 6 – Medium Term Financial Strategy 2017-18 to 2020-21 as she is employed as a Social Worker in adult social care in Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council.

To receive for approval, the minutes of a meeting of the Adult Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee dated 15 November 2016.

RESOLVED:            That the minutes of the Adult Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee of 15 November 2016 be approved as a true and accurate record.     

The Scrutiny Officer presented a report which detailed the items to be considered and the invitees to attend the next meeting of the Committee on 21 February 2017 and the invitees to attend at the subsequent meeting of the Committee on 21 March 2017. 

Conclusions                  

The Committee noted the items to be considered at its meeting on 21 February 2017 and the invitees to attend on 21 March 2017.

Invitees:

Sue Cooper – Corporate Director – Social Services and Wellbeing

Jacqueline Davies – Head of Adult Social Care

Arron Davies – Finance Manager – Social Services, Wellbeing, Resources and Operational & Partnership Services

Councillor Phil White – Cabinet Member – Social Services and Early Help

The Scrutiny Officer introduced a report, the purpose of which was to present the draft Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) 2017-18 to 2020-21, which set out the spending priorities of the Council, key investment objectives and budget areas targeted for necessary savings.  It also included a financial forecast for 2017-21 and a detailed draft revenue budget for 2017-18.  

The Corporate Director Social Services and Wellbeing set out the context for the draft budget proposals in Adult Social Care which was based on strong management performance across all service areas, robust budget monitoring and change management.  This had been achieved through children’s and adult social care teams being brought together in order to give a stronger focus on social care as a professional discipline and to identify efficiency savings.  Sport, Play and Active Wellbeing had been brought into the same Directorate to better support prevention, early intervention and wellbeing approaches.  She stated that all changes made to the management of the Directorate are linked to better outcomes for people and are linked to the MTFS.  Savings of over £9m in social care had been delivered over the past three years, with a strategy to manage demand and introduce new ways of working in order to lessen dependency and enable people to maximise their independence.  She stated that all services are on track to achieve their targets this year. 

The Corporate Director Social Services and Wellbeing informed the Committee that many of the budget proposals are around the prevention and wellbeing agenda and savings of £10m were needed to be made over the next 4 years.  A number of initiatives are linked to achieve those savings.           

The Committee requested an explanation of the budget reduction proposal SSW2 to develop and implement personalised budgets and paying for care. The Corporate Director Social Services and Wellbeing informed the Committee that future generations will need to have a grasp of paying for care.  Payments for care will be capped and it was for this reason charges are being made for care to enable people to live as independently as possible.  She stated that a lot could be done on personalised budgets and that the Institute of Personal Care had been commissioned to review the direct payments strategy which would be completed in the New Year. 

The Committee questioned who would be responsible for managing and scrutinising the Intermediate Care Fund (ICF), where the funding would be allocated and whether the funding is for a particular project.  The Corporate Director Social Services and Wellbeing informed the Committee that funding from the ICF comes into the Western Bay Region and is used to fund pieces of work across the Region or through the 3 local authorities.  The Western Bay Region has a Partnership Board which has transparent monitoring and governance arrangements.  Key decisions from the Region are considered by each of the Cabinets of the three local authorities and Local Health Board and its decisions can be scrutinised by the overview and scrutiny process.  The Committee requested  ...  view the full minutes text for item 70.

The Scrutiny Officer presented a report which sought nominations for the Collaborative Scrutiny Committee.

RESOLVED:          That Councillors PA Davies, RC Jones and JE Lewis be nominated the three Members of the Committee to serve on the Collaborative Scrutiny Committee.   

To consider any items of business in respect of which notice has been given in accordance with Part 4 (paragraph 4) of the Council Procedure Rules and which the person presiding at the meeting is of the opinion should by reason of special circumstances be transacted at the meeting as a matter of urgency.

There were no urgent items.