Inspection of Supporting People

1
Inspection of Supporting People

• Leicester City Council
• Initial Briefing
• Wednesday 18th July 2007

2
Briefing on potential strengths, weaknesses and
areas to explore

• Inspection Team
• Lesley Barnard - Principal Inspector (AC)
• Jenny Hayball - Support Inspector (AC)
• Dennis Rees - Tenant Inspection Advisor
• Margaret Little - CSCI Inspector
• Sarah Mainwaring-Parr - HMIP Inspector

3
Agenda for today

• Introduction
• Initial thoughts and areas to explore
• Judgement One How good is programme delivery?
• Judgement Two Prospects for improvement?
• Conclusion and next stages
• Time for questions at the end of each section in
  the Key Line of Enquiry

4
Judgement 1 How good is the service?
5
What has the service aimed to achieve?

• The vision for the Supporting People Programme is
  Supporting People, and partner agencies in
  Leicester, will work with others to support
  vulnerable people to get and keep a home in the
  community. It will help vulnerable people to
  have choice and independence in their lives.
  This support will be at the right time, high
  quality and value for money.

6
What has the service aimed to achieve?

• This is supported by a ten strategic objectives
• To Increase capacity where the number of units is
  significantly below the regional and national
  average and where there is evidenced need for the
  service
• Accommodation based generic services should be
  remodelled to more specific client groups where
  there is an evidenced need for such services
• All Floating Support should be coordinated,
  delivered across tenure and not tied to specific
  housing providers
• Leicester will endeavour to develop more flexible
  floating support services over time
• There should be a wider role for Community Alarms
• Reduce average unit costs where it is shown
  Leicesters unit cost for a particular client
  group is significantly above the national and
  regional average
• The full cost of HRSS services will be reflected
  in either the unit cost or service charge,
  introduced over a suitable length of time
• New provision will only be funded if there is
  specific and measurable evidence of need and the
  need for such a service is evidenced as a
  priority with the SP Strategy or specific Annual
  Plan. Such needs data is required to be more
  than general demographic analysis
• Increase the quality of services to better meet
  need and deliver increased positive outcomes for
  individuals
• Improve the alignment of commissioned services
  with the priorities of partner agencies

7
What has the service aimed to achieve?

• The Community Plan is the key plan to improve the
  quality of life for people living and working in
  Leicester City. The Community Plan states that
  Leicester should be A premier city in Europe
  with a thriving and diverse society in which
  everyone is involved and in which everyone can
  have a decent, happy and fulfilling life. A city
  with a strong economy, a healthy caring and
  educated society, a safe and attractive
  environment, and an improving quality of life a
  sustainable city

8
Governance PartnershipsCorporate Commitment

• Potential strengths
• Clear understanding of the councils role as the
  ALA
• Corporate Commitment reflected in additional
  budgets to support the administration of the
  programme
• Supporting People related targets incorporated
  into Councils annual performance plan
• SP funding aligned with the LAA, but work ongoing
  to move towards pooled budgets
• Potential weaknesses
• Limited reports to Council in last 18 months on
  Supporting People
• Identified more work needed to improve Councillor
  understanding of the programme

9
Governance PartnershipsCorporate Commitment

• Areas to explore
• Elected member involvement
• Effectiveness of corporate links
• Links to the LSP and future reporting
  arrangements to LSP
• Work to improve Councillor understanding of the
  programme
• Outcomes from aligned budget with the LAA and
  progress in moving towards a pooled budget

10
Governance PartnershipsCommissioning Body

• Potential strengths
• Strong attendance by Probation and ALA over last
  12 months (100)
• Appears to be operating effectively with
  appropriate level of discussion and challenge
• Memorandum of understanding in place includes
  voting arrangements, and allocation
  coordination of SP work.
• Conflict of resolution protocol recently put in
  place
• Potential weaknesses
• PCT only attended 67 meetings in last 12 months
• Conflict of resolution protocol states no formal
  need for conflict of interest rules

11
Governance PartnershipsCommissioning Body

• Areas to explore
• Effectiveness of Commissioning Body
• How conflicts of interest are dealt with
• Relationship between the Commissioning Body and
  other areas of the governance arrangements
• Links between Commissioning Body and LSP
• Role of CB in LAA robustness of decision making
• Progress with review of memorandum of
  understanding

12
Governance PartnershipsCore Strategy Group

• Potential strengths
• Chaired by Accountable officer
• Key partners represented on the group
• Operating effectively with appropriate level of
  discussion and challenge
• Evidence of outcomes from the Core Strategy Group
• Links in place with the Commissioning Body
• Conflict resolution protocol in place
• Potential weaknesses
• Limited performance information reported
• No service user representatives

13
Governance PartnershipsCore Strategy Group

• Areas to explore
• Effectiveness of Core Strategy Group
• Outcomes achieved by the group
• Action taken to address low attendance Links with
  other parts of the governance structure
• Capacity building of members
• Robustness of work planning
• Application of conflict resolution protocol
• Progress in involving service users within the
  governance arrangements

14
Governance PartnershipsAccountable Officer

• Potential strengths
• Accountable officer at an appropriate level of
  responsibility
• Areas to explore
• Role and effectiveness of Accountable Officer
• Corporate influence of the Accountable Officer
• AO links with other relevant strategies and
  initiatives

15
Governance PartnershipsHealth, Housing, Social
Care and Probation wider partnership arrangements

• Potential strengths
• Leicester Probation Service 2004-07 Accommodation
  Strategy informed by SP needs analysis 5 year
  strategy and SP integrated in the LPS 2007/08
  Business Plan
• Positive protocol in place between Leicestershire
  and Rutland Probation Area and LCC for housing
  high risk offenders in the city and SP involved
  in this arrangement
• Effective reciprocal arrangements between
  neighbouring counties for accommodating high risk
  offenders
• Supporting People well integrated in the Housing
  Strategy 2005-2010, BME Housing Strategy 2004,the
  Homeless Strategy 2003-08, and Older People
  Strategy 2006 with number of key actions relating
  to Supporting People
• Frontline working between health and SP is
  improving resulting in outcomes such as
  development of new Direct Access Hostel
• SP officers are members of planning groups for
  wide range of client groups
• Number of examples of multi agency approaches to
  delivery of the programme e.g. rough sleepers
  pathway project, teenage parent project
• Inclusive forum in place to enable wider
  stakeholder involvement

16
Governance PartnershipsHealth, Housing, Social
Care and Probation wider partnership arrangements

• Potential weaknesses
• SP programme not clearly featuring in health
  documents
• Areas to explore
• Wider strategic links between Supporting People
  and key partners such as health, probation and
  housing
• Approach to wider adult and child protection
  issues
• Plans to review LPS Accommodation Strategy
• Links between LPS Accommodation Strategy and
  mandatory reduction in re-offending LAA targets
• Robustness of MAPPA arrangements and liaison
  arrangements with SP
• Consistency of service specifications in place
  across all offender provision
• Involvement of YOT in the programme, and
  provision for young offenders
• Effectiveness and impact of protocols for
  hospital discharge
• Plans to update Hospital Discharge Guidance with
  identified changes
• Delivery of Supporting People elements of linked
  strategies
• Contribution to and outcomes from membership of
  planning forums/groups

17
Governance PartnershipsService Providers

• Potential strengths
• Commitment to supporting and working with
  providers reflected in vision and values of the
  programme
• Provider forum in place which is now led and
  administered by providers with time for providers
  only at meetings
• 6 providers represented on the CSDG and links
  appear to be operating effectively with feedback
  at each provider forum
• Examples of where providers have led change in
  the programme
• Support for small providers through a voluntary
  sector provider forum, supported by one post
  funded by SP
• Evidence of providers involved in the development
  of some areas of programme delivery

18
Governance PartnershipsService Providers

• Areas to explore
• Effectiveness of providers forum
• Effectiveness of training and support for
  Providers
• Effectiveness of SP newsletters
• Accessibility to and satisfaction with training
  provided
• Communication with providers
• Supported provided to small providers
• Consistency in support between internal and
  external providers
• Provider satisfaction with involvement in the
  programme delivery
• Level playing field for all providers?

19
Governance PartnershipsVoluntary Community
Sector (VCS)

• Potential strengths
• Voluntary and small SP providers group in place
  providing peer support, sharing good practice,
  resources etc.
• One off grant funded post to support the
  voluntary sector provider forum
• a local Voluntary Charitable support
  organisation (funded by the Council) Voluntary
  Action Leicester provided training on policies
  and procedures in line with the QAF lite.
• SP Team is working with colleagues with central
  procurement to link training currently available
  to Small and Medium Enterprises funded through
  the European Social Fund.
• Potential weaknesses
• Lack of well established links with the wider non
  SP funded voluntary sector

20
Governance PartnershipsVoluntary Community
Sector (VCS)

• Areas to explore
• Links between SP and the voluntary sector
• Voluntary sector involvement in governance
  arrangements
• Outcomes from Voluntary and Small providers group
• Capacity building for when one off grant funding
  ends
• Progress with Small and Medium enterprise work

21
Grant Compliance, Strategy NeedsGrant
Conditions and eligibility criteria

• Potential strengths
• Reviews used to identify ineligible funding and
  now transferred to appropriate budgets, based on
  eligibility principals agreed in 2003
• Comparably lower levels of ineligible funding due
  to ongoing work to ensure eligible services
  funded from point of introduction of SP
• New robust eligibility policy developed April 07,
  particularly for use in new service
  specifications
• Number of examples provided where services
  decommissioned or changed as a result of
  eligibility of support
• Potential weaknesses
• Historically there has not been a published
  eligibility criteria

22
Grant Compliance, Strategy NeedsGrant
Conditions and eligibility criteria

• Areas to explore
• SP involvement in de-registration of former
  residential care homes, and any issues?
• Appropriateness and consistent application of
  eligibility criteria (provide copy of that used
  to support individual service reviews)
• Involvement of partners and providers in
  development of eligibility policy
• Provider and partner understanding of the
  eligibility policy
• Progress with implementation of new eligibility
  policy and outcomes to date
• Any issues from registration of Domiciliary Care
  Providers also providing SP services?
• Effectiveness of and current position of
  retraction plan
• Detail of retraction plan and its implementation
  provider satisfaction
• Involvement of partners in agreeing plans for
  transfer of ineligible funding

23
Grant Compliance, Strategy NeedsFive Year
Strategy

• Potential strengths
• Comprehensive five year strategy in place for
  2005-10, supported by annual plans
• Clearly identifies actions and priorities for
  delivery with robust criteria in place for the
  identification of service development priorities
• Easy read version of the strategy available for
  service users, including translation into 3 main
  community languages
• Links made to other strategies and plans
  including teenage parents, learning disabilities,
  older people
• Range of methods used to consult stakeholders,
  providers service users, partners and elected
  members in development of the strategy
• SP involvement in client group planning forums
  used to inform the strategy
• Appropriate prioritisation system in place to for
  existing services and proposed developments
  including relative levels of provision,
  contribution to partners strategies risk to
  service users
• Potential weaknesses
• Links to priorities, targets and objectives of
  partner agencies not clear

24
Grant Compliance, Strategy NeedsFive Year
Strategy

• Areas to explore
• Provider, partner and stakeholder satisfaction
  with opportunity to contribute to development of
  the strategy and associated annual plans
• Accessibility of the five year strategy and
  annual plans
• Provider, partner and stakeholder awareness of
  strategy and key priorities
• Future plans for reviewing the strategy
• Outcomes from delivery of the strategy
• Links to other key strategies and plans

25
Grant Compliance, Strategy NeedsNeeds mapping,
analysis and review

• Potential strengths
• Template used to collate client group needs
  information and used to inform the five year
  strategy
• Comprehensive needs analysis of offenders
  completed in 2003 to inform the LPS 20054-07
  Accommodation Strategy and the offender section
  of the SP 5 year strategy
• Access range of needs information from other
  sources and agencies (see weakness)
• Summary of updated needs information used to
  inform development of the annual plans
• Potential weaknesses
• Ad hoc approach to collection of needs
  information recognised as an area for
  improvement by LCC, and proposing to develop
  strategy to take forward
• Some gaps in needs data for specific client
  groups which dont appear to have been addressed
  e.g. physical disabilities
• Reliance on 2001 census data to identify local
  needs for services for some service user groups

26
Grant Compliance, Strategy NeedsNeeds mapping,
analysis and review

• Areas to explore
• Robustness of needs data for each client group
• Use of needs information collected since the five
  year strategy
• Use of individual budget and extra care needs
  assessments to inform service provision
• Use of client group planning forums to collect
  and update needs assessments
• Information sharing arrangements with partners
  and providers
• Evidenced impact and outcomes of the use of needs
  data
• Action taken to address the gaps in needs
  information identified in the five year strategy
• Current gaps in needs data, and action being
  taken to address these
• Reason for detailed needs assessment of teenage
  parents and approach taken
• Other areas where detailed needs assessment
  completed
• Use of needs information to inform joint
  commissioning decisions

27
Grant compliance, strategy and needsStrategy for
access to move on accommodation

• Potential strengths
• Interim move on strategy in place
• Strategy identifies number of initiatives which
  support positive move on
• Move on survey underway with relevant providers
  and stakeholders
• 1.7m of overall 4.8m floating support
  allocation budgeted to deal with post crisis
  support (i.e. move on related support)
• Potential weaknesses
• Lack of strategic approach to dealing with move
  on
• Interim strategy not accompanied by a SMART
  action plan
• Gaps in provision of move on accommodation for
  offenders

28
Grant compliance, strategy and needsStrategy for
access to move on accommodation

• Areas to explore
• Awareness of the ability to move on and potential
  barriers results from move on questionnaire
• Effectiveness of current move on arrangements
• Evidence of partnership approach to resolve to
  move on issues
• Outcomes from the initiatives identified to
  support move on
• Progress with formation of strategic move on
  group
• Access to floating support services as part of
  move on arrangements
• Action taken to extend housing options for
  service users

29
Delivery ArrangementsSupporting People team

• Potential strengths
• Team of 14 staff to deliver the programme
  including policy and service development
  officers, and finance and monitoring officers
• Evidence of support from other corporate teams
  e.g. corporate procurement and legal
• SP team contributes to the client group planning
  forums
• Monthly team meeting and management meetings
• Team standards in place including communication
  and learning and development
• Potential weaknesses
• Staff vacancies in team had some impact on
  completion of QAF validation visits in line with
  the review programme

30
Delivery Arrangements Supporting People Team

• Areas to explore
• Team skills particularly with changing focus of
  programme delivery
• Examples of specialist support form other council
  officers/teams and outcomes
• Project and contract management skills of the
  team
• Management and monitoring arrangements within the
  team
• Links between team and other partners/agencies
• Training opportunities take up?
• Understanding application of adult child
  protection arrangements

31
Delivery ArrangementsWork Planning

• Potential strengths
• Work planned through comprehensive annual plans
  which clearly link to delivery of the strategy
• Annual plan reviewed and updated bi monthly
  through team meetings
• Some evidence of linking to individual work plans
• Strategy action plan updates regularly provided
  to Commissioning Body and Core Strategy
  Development group
• Potential weaknesses
• Resources and expected outcomes not identified to
  support delivery of actions in the strategy
  action plans
• Links to health and probation targets and other
  corporate plans not evident

32
Delivery ArrangementsWork Planning

• Areas to explore
• Team awareness of action plans and priority
  actions consistency and comprehensiveness of
  individual work plans
• Links to governance action planning and level of
  challenge made
• Links to other department and corporate plans,
  and probation and health targets
• Monitoring arrangements for action plan delivery
• Progress in delivering annual plan and service
  plan

33
Delivery arrangementsLocal Area Agreements

• Potential strengths
• Ongoing work to pool SP grant by 2009
• Potential weaknesses
• Lack of evidence to support decision to align SP
  funding in the LAA
• Links to the LSP and LAA not made clear in the
  Annual Plans and Five Year Strategy
• Areas to explore
• Effectiveness, relevance and outcomes of SP links
  to the LAA and LSP, including lines of
  accountability between LSP and CB
• SP funding levels in the LSP and outcomes
• Timeliness and accuracy of returns to CLG

34
Delivery ArrangementsPerformance monitoring and
management

• Potential strengths
• Regular reporting of performance and financial
  information to CSDG and CB
• Some evidence of more detailed performance
  analysis and trends
• Evidence of appropriate financial controls in
  place
• Potential weaknesses
• Limited performance information reported with
  focus on the two national KPIs and no analysis of
  information
• Limited challenge of performance and financial
  information at both meetings given the level of
  information reported
• Outcomes not reported to Commissioning Body or
  Core Strategy Group
• Internal audit of financial and payment systems
  carried out identified 3 areas for improvement

35
Delivery ArrangementsPerformance monitoring and
management

• Areas to explore
• Effectiveness of performance management system
• Effectiveness of financial monitoring
• Outcomes achieved through performance monitoring
  in terms of active responses to pursue
  improvements
• Extent to which more detailed performance
  information has been produced, and impact of use
• Progress in addressing recommendations from
  internal audit report

36
Delivery Arrangements Fairer Charging

• Potential strengths
• Reminder of provide duty around fairer charging
  assessments included in inflationary increase
  letters to providers
• Potential weaknesses
• Very low level of applications only 3
  requesting a Fairer Charging assessment to date
  - recognise this is partly due to 77 of users
  subsidised via HB
• Limited evidence of information for service users
  on availability of fairer charging not included
  in standard SP leaflet
• No evidence of the assessment of potential take
  up
• No evidence of promotional work with providers
  and service users to encourage take up aware
  some work planned

37
Delivery Arrangements Fairer Charging

• Areas to explore
• Efficiency of Fairer Charging arrangements
  including completion of assessment and issuing of
  invoices to service users
• Top up charges any local providers charging
  fees over and above the SP grant?
• Integration with other income maximisation work
  across the city
• Promotion of Fairer Charging with providers and
  service users, including provider awareness of
  opportunities for fairer charging assessments
• Links to other corporate fairer charging
  assessments

38
Delivery Arrangements Risk Management

• Potential strengths
• Comprehensive risk register incorporated into
  annual plans
• Some business critical risks identified for
  inclusion within the departmental risk register
• Potential weaknesses
• Council has major incidence contingency plan in
  place, however only appears to relate to Flu
  epidemic in relation to supporting people
• Identified as area for improvement to firm up SP
  team procedure for responding to risks specific
  to the SP market
• Areas to explore
• Effectiveness of risk management in
  decommissioning services
• More detailed risk assessment in place e.g.
  provider level?
• Evidence of effectiveness of risk management
  arrangements, reviewing and reporting within the
  programme and corporately
• Partner involvement in risk management
• Use of service reviews and contract monitoring
  arrangements in the identification and management
  of risk

39
Delivery Arrangements CLG Monitoring (SPLS data
upload)

• Potential strengths
• Appropriate arrangements in place to ensure
  uploads are timely
• Areas to explore
• Quality and timeliness of uploads
• Arrangements in place to check the quality and
  accuracy of data

40
Commissioning PerformanceContracts

• Potential strengths
• All service reviews completed by March 2006
• Automated tools used to progress and record
  service reviews
• Steady state contracts in place for all external
  contracts
• Draft contract management framework
• New contract monitoring arrangements include
  involvement of service users
• Comprehensive Provider Information Pack produced
  for reviews
• Comprehensive review officer guidance document
• Questionnaire used to collect providers views on
  how the scheme review process
• Potential weaknesses
• Not all services subject to QAF validation as
  part of the review process to ensure March 06
  deadline could be met
• Not clear how links have been made to shared
  targets through service reviews and contract
  negotiations

41
Commissioning PerformanceContracts

• Areas to explore
• How robust have service reviews been in assessing
  ineligibility and value for money
• Have changes been implemented following service
  reviews
• Involvement of other partners in service reviews,
  contract negotiations and management e.g.
  probation, health
• What is the current position on contracts across
  the programme (how many on steady state / interim
  / expired)
• Progress in development of new contract
  monitoring arrangements
• Training for providers on approach to reviews and
  contract monitoring arrangements, particularly
  support for small providers
• Effectiveness of new contract negotiation and
  monitoring arrangements and consistency between
  internal and external providers
• Involvement and satisfaction of service providers
  and service users with methodology
• Extent of any joining up of commissioning and
  monitoring
• Results and outcomes from scheme review
  consultation

42
Commissioning PerformanceQuality Assurance

• Potential strengths
• Internal panel used to quality assure outcomes of
  review prior to submission to CSDG and CB
• Clearly laid out guidance for officers and
  providers to help ensure consistency in approach
• CSDG have reviewed all review reports prior to
  submission to CB
• Potential weaknesses
• Not all services have had a QAF validation visit
  to date to be completed by September 2007, with
  16 services outstanding out of the 185 services
• Arrangements for quality assurance in the new
  contract monitoring arrangements to be developed

43
Commissioning PerformanceQuality Assurance

• Areas to explore
• What is the current position with QA anything
  documented, anything started, If so what was the
  outcome and has anything changed
• Arrangements for ensuring continuous improvement
• Development of quality assurance arrangements for
  new contract monitoring arrangements
• Progress in completion of outstanding QAF
  assessments

44
Commissioning PerformanceReporting

• Potential strengths
• Comprehensive review reports automatically
  produced using workbook
• Reported to commissioning body and evidence of in
  depth discussion in some cases
• Dedicated time set aside at CB and CSDG to ensure
  appropriate consideration given to review reports
  and the recommendations made
• Potential weaknesses
• Limited challenge to outcomes of review reports
  at Commissioning Body
• Areas to explore
• Effectiveness of current reporting arrangements
  and challenge made
• Action taken as a result of identified areas of
  concern
• Timeliness and quality of reporting to providers,
  particularly following the Commissioning Body
  meeting

45
Commissioning PerformanceCross Authority

• Potential strengths
• Involved in work to develop joint or similar
  working practices across neighbouring authorities
  Signed up to Joint Accreditation Protocol through
  the Midland Region Contract Group
• Some schemes operating jointly in LCC and
  neighbouring authorities so joint approach taken
  to service review process
• Potential weaknesses
• Delays in accrediting providers due to capacity
  issues
• Areas to explore
• Effectiveness of accreditation and passporting
  arrangements
• Outcomes from cross authority work
• Integration into work planning
• Reporting progress to governing bodies

46
Commissioning performance Improvement planning

• Potential strengths
• Target set in five year strategy for all
  providers to be level B by 2008
• Actions plans developed through service review
  process 103 action plans issued to date
• Review officers have responsibility for ensuring
  timely completion of action plan
• Training provided to small providers through
  voluntary provider forum to help improve
  performance against the QAF
• Areas to explore
• Criteria for production of action plan
• Effectiveness of improvement planning
  arrangements, including consistency of monitoring
• How ambitious are the improvement targets set?
• Outcomes from training for small providers
• Use of QAF validation and plans for future
• Use of supplementary QAFs

47
Commissioning PerformanceComplaints

• Potential strengths
• Clear guidance on the approach to complaints
  including timescales and 3 stage escalation
  policy
• Complaints to be considered as part of new
  contract monitoring arrangements
• Potential weaknesses
• No evidence of complaint reporting to CSDG or CB
• Areas to explore
• Publicity and awareness of complaints procedure
• Protocols to enable refer issues of adult
  child protection
• Level of complaints received and effectiveness of
  application of the complaints procedure
• Monitoring and reporting of complaints
• Use of complaints to improve services provided or
  programme delivery
• Engagement of partners in dealing with complaints
  

48
Commissioning and PerformanceAppeals Process

• Potential strengths
• Details of appeals process included in the
  Provider Information Pack on service reviews
• 4 stage appeals process in place with clear
  timescales and delegation processes
• Includes use of an appeals panel where
  satisfactory outcome achieved comprising CB
  representative, CSDG representative and an third
  independent representative Only one appeal to
  date settled at stage one
• Areas to explore
• Service provider satisfaction with the process
• Publicity and awareness of appeals procedure
• Details of the appeal made and how this was dealt
  with and reported

49
Commissioning PerformanceOutcomes

• Potential strengths
• Some changes to service provision following the
  reviews 155 units of support decommissioned
• Evidence of meeting top priorities identified in
  the five year strategy
• Strategic review of floating support resulting in
  outcome based set of services being introduced
• Areas to explore
• Extent of decommissioning
• Any outcomes from contract monitoring and
  improvements flowing from service improvement
  plans
• QAF levels of providers and trends
• Evidence of service improvements
• Impact of floating support strategic review
• Future strategic reviews planned?

50
Value for moneyDefining VFM

• Potential strengths
• Commitment to value for money through
  consideration of the cost and quality of services
  is reinforced through the LCC SP vision and
  number of objectives
• Areas to explore
• Team, provider and partner understanding of the
  definition and approach to value for money

51
Value for MoneyMethodology for contracted
services

• Potential strengths
• Approach to VFM embedded within the approach to
  service reviews
• Detailed technical guidance for staff and summary
  with template for providers
• Approach developed through consultation with
  providers and CSDG
• Comparisons made using benchmarking information
  collected against local and national providers
  for primary client group, accommodation type and
  accommodation type and primary client group
  combined
• Areas to explore
• How will unlocked funding be invested?
• Application of VFM methodology and impact on
  contract negotiations
• How are specialised services catered for? Any
  involvement of key partners e.g. probation?
• Service user involvement in determining VFM
• Provider awareness and satisfaction with approach
  to VFM
• Consistency application level playing field for
  all providers?
• Approach to small voluntary sector providers
• Robustness of VFM decision made

52
Value for moneyBenchmarking

• Potential strengths
• Evidence of benchmarking within service review
  reports
• Involvement in the East Midlands Benchmarking
  Exercise in 2004 and 2006
• Action being taken to address where there
  services cost above the national average
• Potential weaknesses
• Results from 2006 benchmarking not known until
  March 2008
• Little evidence of benchmarking other than
  through the service review process
• 3 client groups are significantly above the
  national average cost
• Areas to explore
• The impact or changes did existing benchmarking
  activity has had in
• Other approaches to accessing benchmarking
  information
• Action taken to deal with high cost services
• Reporting of outcomes of benchmarking to CB and
  CSDG

53
Value for moneyProcurement

• Potential strengths
• Over 10 of efficiency savings following service
  reviews
• Full tendering exercise completed when a provider
  exists the market
• VIP used to look approach at joint commissioning
  and procurement
• Potential weaknesses
• No evidence of a SP procurement strategy or plan
• Areas to explore
• Progress in developing a procurement plan for the
  programme
• Proposals to balance the need for improved VFM,
  large scale competition, managing the markets,
  maintaining a diverse provider market and
  including the interests of small provider
• Plans to develop procurement strategy and plan
• Links between SP procurement and corporate
  procurement strategy
• Access to relevant skills and expertise to
  support procurement.
• Robustness and transparency of one off grant
  bidding process
• Robustness of approach to procurement
• Use of VIP work to inform future procurement and
  commissioning of services

54
Value for moneyImproving value for money

• Potential strengths
• 3 actions included in 2005/06 AES for the council
• Reduction in unit cost of provision for most
  client groups
• Service reviews have resulted in saving of 1.5m
  after an increase of 300k for some services
• Reduced costs of services with overall unit cost
  for accommodation falling from 45.38 in 2003/04
  to 42.21 in 2006/06 and average unit cost for
  floating support falling from 87.80 to 80.15
• Areas to explore
• Use of VFM methodology in driving improvement
• Performance against AES targets (SP programme
  only)
• Service changes resulting from VFM assessments

55
Value for money Cross authority approach

• Potential strengths
• Working with East Midlands regional group sub
  group to examine ways in which regional
  benchmarking can be developed but not to be
  implemented until March 2008
• Potential weaknesses
• Little evidence of cross authority approach
• Areas to explore
• Use of joint procurement opportunities
• Future benchmarking activity
• Outcomes from East Midlands Regional Group
• Use of cross authority approach to share best
  practice and expertise
• Impact of cross authority work on improving VFM

56
Value for moneyAdministration Grant

• Potential strengths
• Comparisons of proportion of admin grant to
  programme grant made to other programmes (e.g.
  NRF) and to SP within other ALAs which
  demonstrates positive comparison
• Potential weaknesses
• Assessments only cost based
• Areas to explore
• What does the Council receive in return for
  expenditure on Admin outputs, quality, impact
• Do you know how this compares with others eg.
  Size of team, salary levels, budgets for IT,
  staffing, premises, overheads?
• Any ongoing work to improve value for money
  benchmarking, recruitment

57
Service User InvolvementOpportunities

• Potential strengths
• Opportunities to be involved in the development
  of the five year strategy
• Evidence of service users involved in a number of
  research projects and needs assessments
• Use of existing service user groups
• Use of Citizens Panel to consult on the
  Strategic Review of floating support
• Potential weaknesses
• Not all service user groups consulted directly in
  the development of the five year strategy
• Need to undertake wider consultation with BME
  community groups to inform strategy and needs
  analysis
• Lack of service user involvement in governance
  arrangements with no service user representatives
  on the CSDG or the inclusive forum

58
Service User InvolvementOpportunities

• Areas to explore
• Links to Carer and advocacy groups to improve
  involvement
• Opportunities for ongoing service user
  involvement in delivery of the programme
• Impact and success of the work with the voluntary
  sector, advocacy services and specialist support
  services to engage with harder to reach groups
  and socially excluded users
• Capacity building for service users
• Action to increase opportunities to ensure
  available for all groups
• Action to improve service user involvement in
  governance arrangements
• Use of existing service user groups and outcomes
  for supporting people

59
Service User InvolvementInvolvement in
contacting and monitoring

• Potential strengths
• Service user face to face focus groups undertaken
  at each individual service review
• Service users involved in the strategic review of
  floating support services in a variety of ways
• Service users involved through series of
  consultation events to support remodelling of
  Heathfield House and used to inform the
  development of the service specification
• Service users invited to comment on contract
  management framework via online tool
• Areas to explore
• Effectiveness of service user involvement in
  reviews and future plans for contract monitoring
• Evidence of service user involvement in service
  development and tendering exercises
• Consistency of involvement in reviews and service
  developments

60
Service User InvolvementOutcomes from service
user involvement

• Potential strengths
• Service user involvement used to inform
  development of five year strategy
• Evidence of service users influencing the
  outcomes of the strategic review of floating
  support
• Teenage parents (users and non users of SP
  services) engaged in research which informed
  development of the PIPS multi agency floating
  support service
• Connexion Peer Researchers used to undertake
  research of young people in supported
  accommodation and hostel provision resulting
  number of recommendations
• Gypsies and Travellers engaged in research to
  identify their housing and housing related
  support needs outcomes to feed into the
  Strategic review of floating support
• Areas to explore
• Outcomes from service user involvement
• Examples of how service user feedback has been
  used in service planning and improvement
• Impact on procurement and contracting
• Progress in reaching individuals and service user
  groups not reached before, and addressing gaps in
  service user involvement
• Use of advocacy and support groups
• Progress in taking forward recommendations made
  by Connexions Peer Researchers, and Gypsies and
  Travellers research

61
Access to services and information Access and
referral to services

• Potential strengths
• Stakeholder views sought on access
• Referral information included in the directory of
  services
• Strategic reviews are considering access routes
  to those services plans in place to address
  through the new structure of floating support
  services
• Work ongoing to develop a cross authority Local
  Connection and Reconnection Protocol
• Extra SP funding used to support provision of
  extra bedspaces from variety of providers to
  relieve pressure on direct access hostels
  reduce use of BB
• Potential weaknesses
• Details of exclusions recorded via contracts
  however not detailed within the directory of
  services
• Temporary pathway for referrals to address
  pressures on direct access appears to have
  created access issues for other service users

62
Access to services and information Access and
referral to services

• Areas to explore
• How effective are access arrangements and what is
  the breakdown by direct access, self referral and
  referral from agencies
• Fairness and transparency of access arrangements
• Staff and partner agencies ability to sign post
  users to access and referral routes
• Understanding of the barriers to access and
  referral
• Analysis of exclusions proposals to address or
  challenge where these are not appropriate
• Impact of strategic reviews in addressing issues
  identified in relation to access and referral
• Progress in incorporating access referral
  routes into service specifications
• Progress in development of the cross authority
  Local Connection and Reconnection Protocol
• Progress with Rough Sleepers Pathway project in
  improving access

63
Access to services and information Information

• Potential strengths
• Clear leaflets for e.g. pregnancy advice, victims
  of Domestic Violence- signpost variety of
  agencies who can offer support also general SP
  leaflet about HRSS
• Some examples of information developed with
  potential or actual service users (e.g. teenage
  pregnancy leaflet). Also picked up at service
  level through the reviews
• Easy read version of the SP strategy produced
• Potential weaknesses
• LCC not got complete information about community
  client group publications (action in
  consultation communications plan for 2007/08 to
  map these)
• Many service provider leaflets not offered in
  alternative formats/languages
• General SP leaflet lists types of services
  available client groups but includes no service
  standards does not give even brief outline of
  how someone might access services

64
Access to services and information Information

• Areas to explore
• What is the range of information available - is
  this available across all service user groups?
• How are users being involved in developing
  information for users
• Alternative formats available
• Appropriateness of information available
• Accessibility of information on the programme and
  for individual client groups

65
Access to services and information Directory

• Potential strengths
• On-line directory of services via LCC SP
  website Kweb - searchable by client group,
  service type, service name provider includes
  brief details of referral routes
• Some service specific leaflets which include
  contact details of relevant agencies which are
  both SP and non SP funded
• Potential weaknesses
• No evidence of accessible formats or alternative
  means of accessing the directory other than
  through the internet
• Areas to explore
• Progress in developing the web site and other
  information for users
• How was directory developed and arrangements for
  keeping up to date
• Partner involvement in developing the directory
• Access to the directory
• How is satisfaction assessed?
• Progress with development of directory for new
  arrivals

66
Access to services and information Website

• Potential strengths
• Site provides feedback opportunities either
  general or re. specific consultation exercises
• Different display options e.g. high contrast,
  large text
• Clearly distinguished information for service
  users providers
• Clear links to relevant local national sites
• Wide range of info on site full details/papers
  re. review of floating support
• Potential weaknesses
• Difficult to access information on supporting
  people via the council website
• Not clear how to make complaint on SP site
• Areas to explore
• Development plans for the website
• Access to alternative formats via website
• Links from SP to other useful sites?
• Provider satisfaction with the website
• Use of feedback from service users and providers
  to develop the website

67
Access to services and information Better Care
Higher Standards

• Potential strengths
• Better Care Higher Standards Charter in place
  from June 2003 which includes clear links to the
  supporting people programme including standards
  which can be expected and contact information.
  Clear and easy to understand document.
• Potential weaknesses
• No plans to review or update the Better Care
  Higher Standards document
• Areas to explore
• Accessibility of the Better Care Higher
  Standards Document

68
Access to services and information Service
charges access to fairer charging

• Potential strengths
• Reminders sent annually with inflationary
  increase letters
• Able to demonstrate there are not top up charges
  in place. Inflationary increase reliant on
  services demonstrating actual charge to service
  users
• Appeals process built into fairer charging policy
• Potential weaknesses
• Awareness raising and links to benefit take up
  recognised as areas for improvement by LCC but
  action to address currently put on hold due to
  capacity issues
• Areas to explore
• Effectiveness of Fairer Charging promotion
• Ease of access to Fairer Charging Assessment
• Evidence of increased take up?

69
DiversityIdentifying diverse needs

• Potential strengths
• Has participated in jointly commissioned work to
  better understand support needs of travellers
• SP strategy considers needs service take up of
  BME service users both specifically as part of
  consideration of different need groups
• Research analysis of needs re. teenage
  pregnancy carried out involving service users
  led to funding service changes
• Research and needs analysis of single homeless
  completed through Homeless Grant funding
• Has guidance for use by stakeholders to help
  ensure need information collected in more
  consistent manner to assist prioritisation
• Potential weaknesses
• Service users from some client groups (e.g.
  Refugees/asylum seekers, BME communities) not
  directly consulted re. 5 year strategy so may be
  gaps in needs assessments (is action in 2007/08
  communications plan)

70
DiversityIdentifying diverse needs

• Areas to explore
• How is information on service user needs being
  used to inform commissioning and service
  development?
• Progress on developing research for BME groups
  with supported housing needs e.g. learning
  disabilities
• Use of client record information and outcomes
• How are rapidly changing demographics captured
  used to influence approach?
• Use of multi agency working to identify diverse
  needs
• Progress with/outcomes from June 2007 review of
  needs for BME specific DV Refugee service

71
DiversityExcluded Groups

• Potential strengths
• Ongoing analysis of the needs of excluded groups
  completed as part of annual plan updates
• Have used one-off SP grants to support
  information training on LGBT issues
• Development of multi agency Parenting
  Information and Pregnancy Support Scheme for
  Teenage Parents resulting from the research and
  needs assessment for this client group.
• Action plan in place to improve access
  arrangements for single homeless young people
• Multi agency approach being taken to address
  access to SP services for rough sleepers
• Areas to explore
• Who are the excluded groups and what progress has
  been made?
• Activity to engage with excluded groups
• Work in progress to ensure needs information
  updated
• Identification of how needs of excluded groups
  may be met
• Progress in delivering Action plan for single
  young homeless people service

72
DiversityCultural Sensitivity

• Potential strengths
• Has used QAF to assess individual schemes
  approach to cultural sensitivity
• Equality impact assessment carried out re. new
  contract management framework
• Some initial outcomes from strategic review of
  floating support services which relate to
  cultural sensitivity
• Potential weaknesses
• Identified need to engage more fully with general
  groups with BME communities to inform ongoing
  needs analysis
• Areas to explore
• Examples of where the voluntary sector provides
  culturally appropriate services
• Examples of where equality impact assessments
  have been carried out for new services
• How is added value assessed?
• Robustness of Equality Impact Assessment process
• Progress with diversity in procurement work
• Assessment of ease of physical access to
  accommodation based services and any changes made
  / proposed
• Use of strategic review of floating support to
  address cultural sensitivity of services and
  progress in delivering these

73
Outcomes for service usersSP Service Improvements

• Potential strengths
• Improvements in the quality of services provided
  increase in number of schemes at level C from
  67 at time of initial review to 111 at end of
  2006/07 and 103 action plans in place to further
  improve services
• Case study examples collected as part of the five
  year strategy development
• Services are developed in line with 5 year
  strategy priorities and evidence of addressing,
  or action in place to address priority areas
• Strategic review of floating support completed
• Savings from service reviews used to fund one off
  projects
• Potential weaknesses
• Still 13 schemes operating below level C (however
  action plans in place to meet minimum
  requirements of level C)
• Delays in strategic reviews for homelessness and
  community alarms due to other strategic reviews
  taking longer than planned
• Leicester has not systematically identified the
  high performing providers, or made links between
  providers to support service improvement

74
Outcomes for service usersSP Service Improvements

• Areas to explore
• Outcomes or improvements for service users and
  are these linked to the priorities?
• How gaps in need are met
• Improvements in service quality
• Service user involvement in identifying
  improvements
• Actual changes in service provision remodelling
  and new services and how this aligns to priority
  areas and addressing gaps
• Any examples of case studies since five year
  strategy
• Improvements resulting from strategic review of
  floating support
• Outcomes from use of one off grants

75
Outcomes for service usersChoice for service
users

• Potential strengths
• Number of priorities of unmet need identified in
  the five year strategy where action has been
  taken to address
• Scheme now in place Homeless Families at risk of
  eviction due to Anti Social Behaviour (pipeline
  scheme) which has demonstrated positive outcomes
  to date
• Slight increase in the level of provision from
  7505 units in April 2003 to 7623 in March 2007
• Tenure neutral floating support service in place
• Pilot authority for individual budgets improving
  needs assessment and choice of service provider
• Improved access and pathways to services for
  teenage parents and single homeless
• Potential weaknesses
• Gaps in provision of floating support and
  offender accommodation and identified gaps in
  provision for young female offenders, mentally
  disordered offenders, and drug user offenders
• Number of priorities identified in the 5 year
  strategy where it is unclear what action is being
  taken to address
• Choice limited partly through difficulty in the
  access and referral routes. Recognised as an area
  for improvement and to be addressed through
  strategic reviews.

76
Outcomes for service usersChoice for service
users

• Areas to explore
• Effectiveness of move on units
• Availability of services across tenure
• Any issues with choice, and how is this being
  addressed?
• Gaps in provision and how these are being
  addressed
• Understanding work to achieve access through
  emerging individual budget arrangements
• Provision for 16/17 year old offenders
• Evidence of and outcomes from partnership working
  with commissioners, providers and service users
  to improve choice of provision

77
Outcomes for service usersSupport Plans

• Potential strengths
• Support plans checked as part of service
  validation and actions incorporated into action
  plans where needed
• Work to improve joined up approach to support
  planning through individual budget project and
  the Extra Care scheme joint assessment and
  support planning
• Potential weaknesses
• Not all services have been validated to date
  therefore quality of support plans not checked in
  every serviceAreas to explore

78
Outcomes for service usersSP Service Improvements

• Areas to explore
• Arrangements for monitoring quality of support
  plans in place
• Quality of support plans in place and their use
• Support and learning between providers on support
  planning
• Impact of access to move on in support planning
• Progress with individual budget joint support
  planning arrangements
• Progress with joint assessments and support
  planning for Extra Care scheme

79
Outcomes for service usersOutcome measurement

• Potential strengths
• Basket of regional outcome measures agreed
  through East Midlands RIG - however not in place
  at current time
• Strategic objectives set are clearly outcome
  focused and include measures
• Potential weaknesses
• No formal monitoring of outcomes beyond standard
  KPIs
• Unclear how achievement of strategic outcomes are
  measured and monitored
• Areas to explore
• Future plans for outcome measurement including
  adoption of CLG National Outcome Framework
  progress to date
• Any user satisfaction measures?
• Evidence of improved quality of life and life
  chances
• Impact on preventative health and social care
  targets
• Impact on offender management targets
• Evidence of robust adult child protection
  protocols
• Roll out of East Midlands RIG regional outcome
  measures
• Use of outcome information collected as part of
  service reviews

80
Judgement 2 What are the prospects for
improvement?
81
What is the track record in delivering
improvements?

• Potential strengths
• 8 out of 12 highest priorities identified in the
  five year strategy have been addressed
• Steady state contracts issued to all providers,
  and inflation awarded to all providers despite
  reduction in funding
• 1.5m of savings realised following service
  reviews, with reduced costs of services with
  overall unit cost falling
• Performance against KPI scores has improved over
  the last three years
• Potential weaknesses
• inconsistent practices in corporate procurement
  rules and lack of contract management framework
  in the ALA impacting on time has taken to develop
  a robust approach and procedures
• Number of planned tasks detailed in annual plans
  not delivered on time or put on hold due to
  capacity issues e.g. accreditation, pushing
  eligibility criteria, strategic review of
  community alarms, QAF validation visits not
  completed for all providers and eligibility
  criteria not published

82
What is the track record in delivering
improvements?

• Areas to explore
• Progress in delivery of five year strategy
• Trends in key performance indicators
• Achievement to date what change and improvement
  for service users can be evidenced?
• Increases in capacity and/or quality of services?
• How gaps in services are being addressed
• SP links to best value reviews
• Progress of recently introduced strategies,
  policies, methodologies.
• What improvements are experienced by service
  users?
• Progress against delivering SP programme
  objectives
• Action to improve value for money
• Evidence of ambition to secure continuous
  improvement

83
How well does the service manage performance?

• Potential strengths
• Clear vision statement supported by values,
  strategic objectives and proposed strategic
  outcomes
• Clear links between five year strategy, annual
  plan and other strategies and plans within the
  council, and across some partners
• Appropriate arrangements in place for the
  monitoring of action plan delivery
• Recent improvements in the use of action plans to
  support project delivery
• Communication and Consultation Plan to support
  five year strategy and annual plan delivery
• Use of Prince 2 project management techniques to
  oversee main projects
• Number of ways providers can influence delivery
  of the programme
• Evidence of learning across the department
• Lessons learnt logs completed to ensure learning
  from all major projects carried out
• Strategic reviews of sectors being used to
  further improve programme delivery and outcomes
• Toolkit for strategic reviews to be developed
  based on lessons learnt
• Actions from earlier pathfinder inspection
  integrated into relevant annual plan
• Clear plans in place to achieve efficiency
  savings
• Involved in cross authority groups to share best
  practice and develop consistent approaches to
  elements of the programme, including specialist
  sub groups
• Equality Impact Asse