In-house care review consultation reminder

We launched a formal consultation on the future of our in-house social care services on 16^th October 2015, and the consultation will be open until 17^th January 2016. We would like to encourage as many people as possible to submit their views on the proposals, and to provide any other ideas they have about potential alternative proposals.

The Council currently owns and runs three residential care homes for older people (all of which provide some facility for day care) and one day care centre for adults. We started an exercise to look at the future of these services in March 2014, when the Performance Scrutiny Committee requested that an Elected Members’ Task & Finish group be established to “examine value for money options for delivering high quality social care services in the County”.

The review was requested for two main reasons. First, the Council needs to respond to changing expectations about what modern social services should look like in future. Second, the Council needs to focus its limited resources towards the areas of highest demand, because of the ongoing requirement to deliver financial savings.

As part of the initial “listening and engagement phase” of our review, discussions have taken place with people using our in-house care services and their families. These discussions helped to shape the development of the options now being consulted on.

It is evident from all our discussions so far that the support provided by all our council-run services is greatly valued. It also became apparent that many residents in our three residential care homes would be adversely affected if they were asked to leave their homes now. As a result, our Cabinet agreed that, whatever decisions are made about any future changes, no individual service user will be asked to move from their current home unless a suitable alternative is identified where their needs can be met.

We know this is an unsettling and stressful time for everyone who would be affected by any future changes, and we apologise for any distress this may cause. However, despite the support that clearly exists for our existing services, there are several reasons why we need to consider change:

• Public expectations are changing, and research shows that people generally don’t want to live in residential care homes when they are older. Most people either want to be supported to stay at home, or to live in an extra care housing development which provides 24 hour on-site care that can adapt to their changing needs.
• As public expectations are changing, the demand for “traditional” social care services (like residential and day care) is falling every year in Denbighshire. Also, the demand for Extra Care Housing in Denbighshire is greater than the available supply. There are currently three Extra Care Housing developments in Denbighshire (in Rhyl; Prestatyn; and Ruthin). All three schemes were filled immediately after opening, and have had a waiting list ever since. There is a very high demand for additional Extra Care Housing in the Ruthin area particularly.
• It is more expensive for the council to run its own care services than it is to buy them from the independent sector. We know this because about 95% of adult social care services in Denbighshire are already provided by the independent sector. It becomes even more expensive for us to run our own services as demand falls and the number of vacancies in our residential homes and day centres increase.

As a result of these changes, we expect that the number of standard residential care homes in Denbighshire (and across Wales) will continue to reduce over time. However, we expect that they will be replaced by modern Extra Care Housing schemes and more specialist nursing and/or mental health care homes (where demand is increasing).

There are 4 separate consultations currently taking place, one for each of the following:

• Hafan Deg day care centre in Rhyl
• Dolwen residential care home and day care centre in Denbigh
• Awelon residential care home and day care centre in Ruthin
• Cysgod y Gaer residential care home and day care centre in Corwen

The preferred options:

The current preferred options for each of our existing in-house services are:

Awelon, Ruthin:  At a future agreed date, we would stop new admissions and work with the individuals and their families at their own pace to explore, wherever appropriate, suitable alternatives.  We would then enter into a partnership with the owner of Llys Awelon to develop additional Extra Care apartments on the site. The aspiration is for the site to have 50 extra care flats and a new community facility for wider use, although this may take several years to achieve. The Council wishes to emphasise that no current resident in Awelon will be required to move if it would be unsafe for them to do so. 

Cysgod y Gaer, Corwen: To enter into a partnership with relevant stakeholders (including Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board and the third sector) to develop the site into a ‘support hub’, offering both residential and extra care type facilities, as well as an outreach domiciliary care and support service to the tenants of local Sheltered Housing Schemes and the wider population of Edeyrnion and the surrounding area. This would ensure that the individuals living in Cysgod y Gaer currently can continue doing so through retaining beds at the location, but also develops services that support independence and improved outcomes for others in the local area.

Dolwen, Denbigh:  The suggestion is for the Council to enter into a partnership with an external organisation and transfer the whole service (residential and day care) to them. The new provider would be required to register with the Care & Social Services Inspectorate Wales (CSSIW) to provide care to support older people with more complex mental health needs such as dementia. 

Hafan Deg, Rhyl:  The suggestion is for the Council to enter into a partnership with an external organisation and transfer the building to them.  The building could then be used as a base to provide traditional day care services and early intervention activities for older people that reduce social isolation, support independence and promote resilience.

Councillor Bobby Feeley, Cabinet Lead Member for Social Care, said: “People’s expectations about how they want to live their lives as they get older is changing.  People rightly want (and demand) control over their own lives and the freedom to choose how to live it.  Most people tell us that they do not want to live in a residential care home when they get older.  They say that they would prefer to live in their own home and be supported to be as independent as possible for as long as possible. That is why we are carrying out a review of our in-house care provision, in response to the changing needs of the public. We also recognise the need to consult widely on the proposals and now we urge people who may have a view on the proposals to get involved in this formal consultation”.

How to get involved in the consultation:

The consultation will run until Sunday, January 17.  To get involved please visit the Council’s website, where you can find background information and the consultation response form.  Alternatively you can contact the Customer Connections Team on 01824 708090, by e-mail ssdcomments@denbighshire.gov.uk or by sending comments to the Customer Connections Team, Denbighshire County Council , Russell House, Churton Road,Rhyl, Denbighshire, LL18 3DP.

We have already held 6 public consultation meetings (in Ruthin, Rhyl and Corwen) during November, but there is still an opportunity to attend a further two public which will take place on 14^th January 2016 in meetings will take place at Eirianfa Community Centre, Denbigh (2.30pm-4pm and 6pm-7.30pm).

Please contact the Customer Connection Team on 01824 70 80 90 to let them know that you plan to attend in order that we can ensure that we have sufficient resources for those meetings.