Budget Consultation 09-10- Responses With Council Response

Budget Consultation 2009/10 ___________________________________________________________________ 1.Background

The Cabinet Report (6

th

January 2009) on the Budget Headlines was published on BarnetOnline and residents were invited comment on the headlines. As well as this over allconsultation, consultation has also taken place at a service level.

2.Summary of responses

The online consultation was viewed 256 times. 5 comments were received in total.Four of the comments received were on the budget reductions being made within AdultSocial Services (two were on the reduction of the service within the Horse Activity Stables,and two were on the reduction of services in Sheltered Housing).One comment was on the issue of the Council tax being too high.

3.Process for considering responses/Next steps

The comments were considered b

y

the Leader of the Council, Councillor Freer and theCabinet Member for Community Services, Councillor Hillan. They were also passed

tothe service leads for a direct response

.

The service responses can be found under point4: Detailed responses of this report.

4.Detailed Responses4.1Adult Social Services withdrawal of staff funding at the horse activity

I have serious concerns about item 3 on page 5 of the Adult Social Services section, i.e.

Withdrawal of Adult Social Services staff funding at the Horse Activity StablesProject.

The proposal is that council involvement in the stables would cease although the projectwould continue through its independent management committee. The two staff currentlyemployed by the Council currently support seven service users with alternative dayopportunities secured for them.

This statement is incorrect.

The service users do

not

have alternative day opportunities secured for them. The proposed withdrawal of the two members of staff and funding was onlycommunicated to the service users and their families in the middle of January. Likewisethe management committee of the Stables Project were also informed of this in January.LBB has a duty of care to the service users and in making any changes to their care plansthen a proper re-assessment of needs has to be carried out. The assessments have not yet been carried out and it obviously follows from this thatalternative day opportunities

cannot

have been secured for them.

It is part of the Adult Social Services 3 year plan that the Stables Project should become asocial firm; this is not the intention of the management committee of the Horse ActivityCentre. The service users at the Stables Project do wish to continue their placements at theProject but placements

i.e.

day care is the operative word here, not the paid employmentthere that is being suggested by the Deputy Director, Adult Social Services.I think that there appears to be some very misleading information in this section of theDraft Budget and a decision to agree to this change would be very wrong until thesituation has been clarified. I also think that this withdrawal of funding should be delayedfor at least one year in order to allow the proper consultation and assessment proceduresto be followed.

Council response:

The Council is working closely with the management committee of the Horse Activity Stables Project. The Management Committee has given it’s support to working with theCouncil to take over the running of the day opportunities which are currently provided by Adult Social Services from July 2009. We have made arrangements with the management committee to ensure that there is no loss of service for people attending the Stablesduring the weekdays whilst negotiations are concluded. All individuals attending theStables project during the week are having their needs re-assessed to make sure that they are supported to access services and supports that best meet their needs.The Council believes that it is important that all day services work towards supporting people with learning disabilities into work. The role of day services is to support people todevelop independence in their daily lives and this will form a part of the outcomes that theStables, Horse Activity Project will be expected to achieve for the individuals attending the project funded by the Council. For the Stables, this could include directly employing people with learning disabilities and/or supporting people to develop social skills,vocational skills and confidence that will help them to live more independently.

4.2Withdrawal of Adult Social Services staff funding at the Horse Activity Stables

How exactly are adult social services caring for the vulnerable within the community whenthey withdraw funding from a project for adults with learning difficulties with only tenweeks notice?!!!Page 9 - "Withdrawal of Adult Social Services staff funding at the Horse Activity Stablesproject (70k)Council involvement in the stables project would cease although the project wouldcontinue through its independent management committee. The two staff currentlyemployed by the Council currently support seven service users with alternative dayopportunities secured for them"This headline statement is false and a misrepresentation of the situation. The serviceusers do not have alternative day opportunities secured for them. Infact, the statementabove was made to cabinet before the decision to withdraw funding had beencommunicated to either the project management committee or the users themselves.There are now a great deal of worries about what will happen to the users of the schemeand nothing has been decided about alternative day opportunities.The process being followed in relation to the proposal is absurd - the decision to withdraw

funding was made in December 2008 without any consultation with either the project itself or the users. The LBB has not yet even carried out the assessments on the users toestablish their needs, abilities, etc or to ascertain the impact on them as individuals. Thisshould have been done before any decision was made. Like the users, The Stablesmanagement committee have only been given ten weeks notice of the intention towithdraw the funding, after having been in existence for years and years.The decision has been made to save money, with no thought as to how a group of themost vulnerable adults within LBB are going to be affected. The proposal to withdrawfunding is also being taken in order to help Adult Social Services reach a target set in2007 of 100 adults with learning difficulties being moved into paid employment by 2010.Put simply - cut the funding to The Stables and the users will need to seek paid'employment' within a social firm. This is putting the achievement of metrics set years ago,before the actual needs of the users - the adults with learning difficulties within thecommunity which LBB are supposed to be caring for.

Council response

The Council is working closely with the management committee of the Horse Activity Stables Project. The Management Committee has given it’s support to working with theCouncil to take over the running of the day opportunities which are currently provided by Adult Social Services from July 2009. We have made arrangements with the management committee to ensure that there is no loss of service for people attending the Stablesduring the weekdays whilst negotiations are concluded. All individuals attending theStables project during the week are having their needs re-assessed to make sure that they are supported to access services and supports that best meet their needs.The Council believes that it is important that all day services work towards supporting people with learning disabilities into work. The role of day services is to support people todevelop independence in their daily lives and this will form a part of the outcomes that theStables, Horse Activity Project will be expected to achieve for the individuals attending the project funded by the Council. For the Stables, this could include directly employing people with learning disabilities and/or supporting people to develop social skills,vocational skills and confidence that will help them to live more independently.

4.3Sheltered Housing Accommodation

I write with regard to the proposed budget reduction relating to Sheltered Accommodation.My mother resides at Harmony Close, Princes Park Avenue, Golders Green, which is jointly run by the council and the Jewish Community Housing Association.It is understood that under the council’s proposed cost savings you are planning toreplace the position of Scheme Manager and alarm call system with a ‘roving’ system.Sheltered accommodation has been in existence for many years, both in the private andpublic sector of housing. It is a way for senior citizens to live and lead an independent lifewithin their own home, yet be safe in the knowledge that in their advancing years, shouldthey need some form of assistance help is always at hand.This ‘help’ is not necessarily medical assistance. Sheltered Accommodation wasdesigned for those people who did not need nursing or residential care, however, as onegrows old there is the occasional requirement for practical assistance, such as a fuseblowing; light bulb to be replaced; plumbing needs etc. Whilst the Scheme Manager,him/herself might not do these jobs themselves, they certainly are there to facilitate their