Minutes:
[Mr M Mullaney CC and
Mrs A Wright CC left the meeting at this point and did
not return to the meeting.]
The Committee considered a report of the Director of Adults
and Communities which provided an update of the current position in care homes
across Leicestershire and the support being offered to them by the County
Council to provide safe and effective care, in the context of the ongoing
Covid-19 pandemic. A copy of the report
marked ‘Agenda Item 9’, is filed with these minutes.
Arising from discussion the following points arose:
(i)
Members noted the uncertainty of future
Government funding for infection control and rapid testing which had been
provided in response to the Covid-19 pandemic but due to come to an end on 31
March 2021. Members further noted that
the free Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) scheme launched by the Government
last year was only due to run until June 2021. It was not yet known whether
such Government support would be extended.
(ii)
A member raised concern about the impact this
would have on care homes emphasising that the Covid-19 pandemic was ongoing,
and without sufficient funding they would be under additional pressure to
manage infection control and to source PPE out of existing shrinking budgets.
It was questioned what level of financial support the Council could
realistically provide to care homes in this regard if no further funding from
the Government was made available. The Director advised that it was difficult
to be certain at this stage until the Government had confirmed its plans, but
it was expected that a flexible approach would be needed, and the Council would
have to consider requests for support on a case by case basis.
(iii)
It was acknowledged that the additional
pressures and costs care homes were experiencing as a result of the pandemic
were likely to continue for some time, and if the additional Government income
stopped and vacancy levels continued to rise, the risks to resident and staff
welfare and overall sustainability of the sector would increase. Assurance was provided that the Department
would continue to work closely with service providers to monitor the situation
and provide support wherever possible, keep in regular contact with other
authorities, both regionally and nationally, and feed into national research
which was being undertaken to evidence the pressures and costs care homes were
facing. Members noted that one of the
key areas that would be considered over the coming months as part of the
research was regarding insurance premiums.
(iv)
A member questioned the potential impact locally
if a large group of care homes collapsed due to lack of financial
viability. The Director provided
assurance that larger organisations would likely be able to offset some of the
risks by making use of their other care homes within their group. However, smaller organisations might have
less options available. The Director
highlighted that whilst the sector overall was comprised mainly of large
national organisations, the local composition was mixed which was thought
provided a level of resilience. Members were pleased to note that, as well as
keeping in regular contact with service providers, the Council also received
wider intelligence from a number of other organisations including other local
authorities, the Care Quality Commission and the emergency services who were
often able to provide a good indication of the risks present, particularly
regarding national organisations.
(v)
It had recently been reported in the national
news that the UK’s largest care provider, HC One, was planning to close four of
its care homes and put 52 up for sale. Members were advised that HC One owned a
small number of homes in Leicestershire, but fortunately the Council had
received confirmation that these homes would be unaffected by the plans and
were to remain open. However, the
Council was continuing to liaise with HC One to ascertain whether people from
Leicestershire that had been placed in HC One care homes out of County would be
affected by the closures.
(vi)
A member confirmed their support for the Unison
Ethical and/or Residential Charter Marks and the approach being undertaken by
the Council to consider the options for and implications of signing up to this.
(vii) The
Committee expressed its thanks to the staff in the Adults and Communities Department
for their ongoing commitment and efforts to support care homes and commended
officers on the comprehensive report. The Chairman also highlighted the
importance of members continuing to offer their support and involvement in the
work being undertaken to support care homes going forward.
RESOLVED:
That the update on care homes sustainability be noted.
Supporting documents: