In line with Council Standing Order 4.7.1 all Contracts with an estimated value of over £2m must be reported to the relevant Overview and Scrutiny Committee before inviting tenders.

The Strategic Director, Health and Wellbeing will submit Document “R” which provides details of the intention to re-commission Carers Services within Bradford District and Craven.

Recommended –

That the Committee discuss the contents of Document “R” and consider any equality and diversity, TUPE and social value implications at this pre- procurement stage in accordance with Council Standing Orders in 4.7.1.

(Kerry James – 01274 43576)

In line with Council Standing Order 4.7.1 all contracts with an estimated value of over £2m must be reported to the relevant Overview and Scrutiny Committee before inviting tenders.

The Strategic Director, Health and Wellbeing submitted Document “R” which provided details of the intention to re-commission Carers Services within Bradford District and Craven.

The Assistant Director Commissioning and Integration, officers from the Commissioning Team, the Quality Assurance Manager and the Head of Commissioning for Mental Wellbeing for Bradford Council and NHS Bradford District and Craven CCGs were in attendance at the meeting.

A summary of the report was provided by the Contract and Quality Assurance Manager.

A Member referred to the findings in the Engagement with Carers report (Document “Q”) that stated “27% of respondents had not been able to access support” and that “carers from a Pakistani background were also more likely to report being unable to access support (45%)”.  He raised concern that this highlighted inadequacies in the current provision and queried how this would be overcome with the new contract provider.  In response it was stated that the service already had an understanding of some of the barriers faced by carers from a black, Asian, and minority ethnic (BAME) background and that an equality impact assessment would be completed as part of the procurement process which would be closely monitored.  It was also stressed that the purpose of the engagement exercise was not to provide feedback or evaluate the current provider but to assist the authority to ensure future provision met the needs of the district.  The Member stated he was still unclear as to how this issue would be addressed in the process and how carers from a BAME background would be reached.  In response, the Assistant Director Commissioning and Integration stated that the service provider would need to demonstrate how it would meet the needs of a diverse district and it would be specified in, and monitored as part of the requirement of the contract.  The Head of Commissioning for Mental Wellbeing added that the Carers Strategy would look at how to identify people who needed support as well as areas that required outreach work.  She stated that working with the new provider would be key to delivering the strategy.

The following responses were provided to Members’ questions from officers present:

·         The tendering process was open to any bidder and was subject to Council Standing Orders and EU Regulations.

·         Understanding the make up of the district and its demographic was stressed within the constraints of the framework used for the procurement process.

·         It was mandatory to include ‘social value’ in the procurement process. 

·         The National Census was undertaken every 10 years and whilst there were challenges around using data from 2011 the service also identified carers through GP practices.

·         There was no target figure the service was aiming to reach but when it became aware of carers it was a matter of ensuring they had access to the support available.

·         Stakeholder engagement had been undertaken to inform the proposed procurement.

The Scrutiny Lead officer agreed to circulate a briefing note on social value to Members.

A Member referred to the findings in the engagement report which highlighted that only 4.29% of the respondents were aware of Connect to Support.  He stated that he was not aware of the service and asked for further information about it.  In response, it was explained that Connect to Support was a website which provided carers with information about what support was available in the area and it included advice pages on adult social care.  It was acknowledged that the service needed to be publicised more and that links to it would soon be included on the Council’s and CCGs webpages to raise its profile.  Following further discussion, it was stated that ‘Rally Round’ (a free and secure online tool that allows family members, friends and carers to organise support for someone they care about) was included in Connect to Support.  The Chair stated that the Committee had previously received a demonstration of the Konnektis service (a tablet device that acts as a ‘care hub’ giving real-time information to homecare workers, family members and medics) and requested that the Scrutiny Lead officer arrange another demonstration for new Members of the Committee.

A Member commented that he considered the authority needed to be stronger in negotiating contracts.  In response, the Assistant Director, Commissioning and Integration stated that this contract was a collaboration with partners and she assured Members there was a clear sense of what needed to be delivered.

Resolved –

That an update report on the Carers Service and Carers Strategy be submitted to the Committee in 12 months.

ACTION: Strategic Director, Health and Wellbeing