Issue - meetings

To set out the outcome of a review of the Tendring’s Careline Service in the context of the change in the market landscape, a number of on-going challenges, including its future financial sustainability, and to present a preferred option for the future provision for public consultation.

RESOLVED that Cabinet –

(a)   notes the outcome of the review of the service as set out in the Portfolio Holder’s report (A.8) and its appendices and agrees the decision, in principle, to adopt Option 2, that is to cease the telecare and lifting/response provision of the Careline Service, in its entirety, including service delivery under third-party contracts and that the remaining service provision will solely relate to the Council’s Out-of-Hours and CCTV service;

(b)   approves the necessary consultation to be undertaken with customers, residents and key stakeholders. This consultation to be based upon balancing best value principles with the needs of the Council’s existing customers, who now have a wider range of options available on the open market, at more comparable rates than the Council can continue to supply the service for;

(c)   delegates the format and design of the consultation to the Leader of the Council and the Portfolio Holder for Partnerships, in consultation with the Assistant Director (Partnerships) and the Assistant Director (Governance);

(d)   agrees the Communication and Engagement Plan with an overriding objective to encourage and support active engagement with services users to understand the principles of Option 2 and the alternative providers available, as well as understanding why Option 2 is the preferred option;

(e)   requests that the outcome of the consultation be reported back to the Cabinet in either October or November 2024, for a decision as to the future provision of Careline Services (telecare/lifting/response service), which will include a detailed transition plan as necessary; and

(f)   subject to the associated funding being agreed as part of report item A.9 elsewhere on the agenda, sets aside a total budget of £0.746m to meet the potential implementation costs.

Earlier on in the meeting as detailed under Minute 24 above, Councillors Chapman BEM and P B Honeywood had both declared an interest in agenda item 16 (report A.8) insofar as they both had relatives who were users of the Careline service.

Cabinet considered a report of the Partnerships Portfolio Holder (A.8), whichset out the outcome of a review of the Tendring’s Careline Service in the context of the change in the market landscape, a number of on-going challenges, including its future financial sustainability, and to present a preferred option for the future provision for public consultation.

Cabinet was informed that Tendring’s Careline Service (Careline) had been operational since 1987. When it was established, it had provided a unique service to Tendring residents, allowing service users to maintain independent living through 24/7 monitoring and response. The service had been highly regarded by both customers and their family members. However, the telecare landscape had since changed, with several alternative providers now in the market offering similar services (including telecare and lifting/response) at comparable fees.

Careline was an in-house service (not a state entity, or Local Delivery Vehicle) which allowed service users to remain living independently in their homes. An additional lifting service had been established in 2016, which allowed responders to lift service users, if appropriate, thereby providing complementary support to Emergency Services.

In addition to its regular operations (as outlined above), the Careline team supported the Authority’s Out-of-Hours service. This service provided a Council response to resident queriesincluding Housing, Environmental Health, Emergency Planning, and CCTV during evenings, weekends, and bank holidays. It was noted that the Out-of-Hours service was a completely separate working function to the Careline service. Outside of Out-of-Hours arrangements, CCTV was currently monitored by the Careline team and footage was downloaded as requested by Essex Police.

Cabinet was informed that the last review of the service had been reported to Cabinet in June 2022, where the future sustainability of the service had been considered. Cabinet was informed at that time, the preferred course of action would be Option 4: an orderly and sustainable growth of the number of service users to increase income. Initially, the service would concentrate on the recruitment and training of enough staff to ensure a safe service was delivered to customers and that the TSA Accreditation was maintained at the next review in July 2022. Simultaneously, a marketing strategy would be drawn up to include online advertising, promotion of a new website with online retail capabilities, and demonstration appearances at relevant groups across Tendring. This strategy would be put into action once the service was fully staffed. Finally, fees and charges would be re-appraised towards the end of 2023 in time for implementation in April 2024. As Option 4 allowed time for the service to stabilise, an advertising campaign to take effect, and start generating new customers, whilst delaying fee increases for service users until April 2024, it was considered the lowest risk  ...  view the full minutes text for item 37