Contact: Colin Hardy, [email protected] 07718 146800

1. Summary

1.1 The Executive Member received a report in January 2008 identifying the need to commence consultation on tendering for some existing overnight short break services for Disabled Children as existing contracts come to and end in March 2009. It was proposed that consultation should also include the broader range of development issues included in the Aiming High for Disabled Children programme in the light of Government Guidance and an announcement about additional grants from 2009/10 to support development of services.

1.2 Consultation was undertaken between February and May 2008 and a further report was considered by the Executive Member on the 22^nd May 2008 with proposals for tendering for overnight short break services, domiciliary care and a long stay residential care service where contracts for existing services end in the spring of 2009. The report also included summary information from consultation which will inform how future services should be developed as new funds are made available from 2009/10.

1.3 Simultaneously the Select Committee has held a consultation event to explore with parents, carers and partners views on how overnight short breaks might be developed.

1.4 This report confirms the requirements to develop a broader range of service to support parents and carers and includes details of how progress will be monitored by Government. The report also summarises the results of recent consultation and confirms the steps being taken to develop a commissioning strategy to be reported to the Executive Member in October 2008 in order that tendering for some additional service developments might be commenced towards the end of 2008/9.

2. Key features of the programme to develop better services - Aiming High for Disabled Children

2.1 There are two main policy areas associated with the Aiming High for Disabled Children Programme, the need to develop a Core Offer and a duty to develop a Full Service Offer.

2.2 The Core Offer is largely a need to make a commitment to issues of principle and process and the Full Service Offer is focused on expanding the extent and nature of services which provide a short break to children, young people, their parents and carers.

Core Offer

2.3 The key elements of the Core Offer are summarised below and will be implemented by a commitment across the County Council and through the way in which partners work together to support service improvements

· Information- that is accessible, available, relevant, joined-up and user focused

· Transparency - of resources, service availability, eligibility criteria, needs analysis and planning

· Participation - in that families are in control of their own services and are engaged in shaping service and monitoring outcomes. This will include ensuring that opportunities exist for local forums, satisfaction surveys and service user groups

· Assessment - that is coordinated, integrated, avoids duplication and undertaken by trained staff

· Feedback - Feedback should be sought from consumers and stakeholder to influence how services are developed. This will include advocacy services.

Full Service Offer

2.4 Draft guidance has been published and includes the following key features. It is anticipated that the final guidance will seek to ensure that there is a base line assessment available and that the new funds are focused on developing additional service opportunities. The Full Service Offer should make clear how existing and new services will:-

· Be sufficient to meet the needs of severely disabled children, their families and carers including those with complex health needs

· Be age appropriate and ensure that vulnerable groups are able to access short breaks, including children on the autistic spectrum, those with complex health needs and technology dependencies, those with moving and handling needs that require aids and adaptations, those with challenging behaviour and severely disabled young people aged over 14 years of age

· Short break services should be wide ranging and tailored to individual needs and should include

- Overnight breaks in the family home and else where

- Breaks during the day with care in the family home or else where

- Breaks available in universal settings delivered through the support of befriending, sitting or sessional services

- Breaks available when help is needed including responding in emergencies

- Services should be well promoted by information and be culturally sensitive

Funding

2.5 The Aiming High programme is funded from 2008/9 and the following table sets out the ring fenced grant to be made to Hampshire. The allocation in 2008/9 is described as infrastructure development funding and further detailed guidance on the focus and monitoring of spending from 2009/10 is awaited. Early indications are that both the capital and the revenue must be committed to additional short break services using the likely broad definition as follows and as set out in paragraph 2.4 above

"An additional service received to support caring and to promote positive activities for young people" (Source - Council for Disabled Children 2008)

2.6 Guidance on monitoring spending of the grant commencing in 20091/0 has yet to be released and it is anticipated it will be necessary to show `additionality' of service developments. To support this approach a base line audit of services, volumes and costs is being conducted jointly with the Hampshire PCT.

2.7 No formal announcement has been made regarding additional funds made, or to be made, available to PCTs to support the development of short break services to those disabled children with health care needs. Ministers have however indicated that broadly PCTs should consider match funds to ensure PCTs can be full partners with Local Authorities in developing services to disabled children. PCTs also have additional responsibilities for leading on the development of a palliative care and a child health strategy over the next year and The Chief Executive of the PCT is seeking to clarify future funding opportunities within this context.

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2.8 The needs assessment being developed jointly with the Hampshire PCT does include an audit of a range of NHS services to disabled children in order that a broad view can be taken as a commissioning strategy is developed. This audit includes the following services relevant to the Aiming High programme

· Access to supportive therapies, including speech and language support

· OT services

· Support to the Joint Equipment Store providing aids and adaptations

· Palliative care

· Overnight short breaks

· Short break care within carers homes

· The work of specialist nurses in the community

· Shared funding to support those with complex needs and dependencies

2.9 The opportunity is also being taken to explore a partnership between the County Council, District Councils and Sport England to provide some match funds to improve the network of community leisure and sports facilities for disabled children.

3. Results of consultation

3.1 Over 300 responses were received to the consultation questionnaire and close to 400 people attended consultation events. A summary version of the questionnaire was made available to Special Schools and Resourced Units.

3.2 A summary of the main findings of the responses is included at appendix 1 and this will be published by way of feedback to those who attended the events and other parents and partners who wish to be engaged in future.

3.3 The key priorities expressed through a response to consultation are summarised below

· Providing a way of ensuring that all parents of disabled children receive quality information from a single source. Involving parents in this as a source of knowledge is essential.

· Ensuring that universal services are able to provide equal opportunities to disabled children and their families to participate in the whole range of growing up opportunities.

· Support, Participation and Advocacy through a Parents and Carers forums that would be available locally. This could provide information and access to support for Direct Payments and self directed support.

· Ensuring there is equality of access to a Short Break service locally, that there is fairness through assessment and eligibility criteria and that there is flexibility.

· That there is a broader range of short break services available, such as after school clubs, holiday play schemes and more support in carers homes.

· Better co-ordination and support for the transition of Disabled Young People into Adult Services.

· Providing a menu of overnight breaks that incorporates support in the carers home, better access to Family Link Services and overnight short breaks outside the family.

· Building the capacity of Disabled Children's Teams to provide access to services from a single point of entry.

· Reducing assessments by enabling some services to be available on a universal basis, with access by way of a `passport' system

3.4 These issue are being taken forward in developing a commissioning strategy which can be considered by Members and Partners in October 2008.

4. Performance Monitoring

4.1 The DCSF has contracted with the Together for Disabled Children Partnership to provide support to all Local Areas (local authorities and PCTs) in their work to secure change in relation to short breaks development and the engagement of families.

4.2 A consultant From TDC has been identified for Hampshire and the authority is required to complete a self assessment questionnaire identifying progress in key areas of engagement with parents and partners leading to development of a commissioning strategy to commence service developments in 2009/10.

4.3 TDC will evaluate the self assessment statement and agree areas where support may be required. The results of this process will be known in mid July 2008 and will influence how work proceeds to identify a Core Offer and Full Service Offer.

4.4 The DCSF has also produced guidance on a National Performance Indicator set (NI 54). It is anticipated that the initial data collection will be way of a survey in 2009 to establish the base line of services on which progress will be monitored.

Guidance on N I54 is included in appendix 2 to this report

5. Next Steps

5.1 The key issues from consultation with parents, carers and partners will be influential in developing a commissioning strategy, which can lead to service developments commencing in April 2007 and the emerging needs assessment work will provide the necessary underpinning analysis of existing service and future needs.

5.2 Further Government guidance is anticipated later in the year and the publication of the National Performance Indicator 54 and the development of a self audit tool for local authorities and PCTs to reflect on progress is helpful in establishing key priorities in developing a Core Offer and Full Service Offer in Hampshire

5.3 The following summarises the sequence of events over the rest of 2008 and into 2009/10 to ensure engagement of parents, carers and partners and in reporting to Members and Partnership Boards

· July - independently facilitated Focus Group with parents and carers to consider a draft commissioning strategy in response to views gained through consultation

· September - tender documentation for some existing overnight short break and domiciliary care services, as approved by the Executive Member in May 2008, made available to service providers

· September - progress report to the Children and Young People's Partnership Management Board

· October - draft commissioning strategy for additional service developments reported to the Executive Member for Children and Families

· November - report to the Hampshire PCT identifying the commissioning strategy for utilising the Aiming High grant from 2009/10 and identifying the potential for a joint approach with the PCT in some areas as the availability of additional funds within the PCT is confirmed

· November - further consultation with parents, cares and partners to feed- back progress

· November / December 2008 - tenders for some additional new services commencing

· January 2009 - Implementation and progress review report to the Executive Member

· April some new services beginning to be available