Present: Paul Latimer Supporting People

Present: Paul Latimer – Supporting People

Julie Batsford – Supporting People

Louise Jeffery – Supporting People

Amanda Crawley – Supporting People

Jo Smailes – Eden District Council

Mary Grace Brown – CASS

Julie Monk – Eden District Council

Chris Graham – Croftlands Trust

Mandy Herring – Mental Health Matters

Anne Taylor – Cumbria Travellers Programme

Hollie Ritson – Children’s Services

Duncan Tilbe – Impact Housing

Barbara Fleary – Risk Taking

Apologies: Duncan Roebuck – Probation

Conrad Leather – Fire and Rescue Services

Cllr Richard Turner – Eden District Council

Introductions

Paul Latimer opened the meeting and introductions were made. A brief overview of the day was given.

Overview of SP need and supply profiles and funding

Julie Batsford gave her presentation relating to Performance and Information for supported housing and housing related support schemes in Eden District Council area. This provided an overview of allocated funding, current supply and needs etc. The presentation showed that:

·  The spend of SPG in Eden was £1.2million last year. A detailed chart showed the breakdown of client groups and accommodation and non accommodation based services.

·  Work still needs to be done to update the data for HGO Consultants.

·  Based on the HGO Iteration 2008/09, there was an over allocation of accommodation based schemes and an under allocation of non-accommodation based schemes.

·  National Performance Indicators for last year were NPI 141 – 63% and NPI 142 – 97.83%.

·  To improve and move to the middle quartile, we need to be achieving NPI 141 – 74% and NPI 142 – 98.88%.

·  We need to work better with providers on increasing the number of clients who move through schemes.

·  In the future we need to evidence that SP can change people’s lives and the Outcomes framework can provide details of the many positive changes that clients can make.

·  Providers are required to send the Outcomes data to St Andrews in order for the SP team to be able to analyse the results and produce Outcomes reports.

·  The Outcomes information will also be made available to the Providers.

Update on commissioning arrangements

·  Cumbria allocation of Supporting People Grant is £10.2million up to March 2011.

·  It has been confirmed that SP can roll forward the previous years under spend of £1.6million.

·  Most of this underspend has already been allocated to different services suggested at the Locality Events last year, however £700k still remains unallocated.

Feedback from Service Users

From the many service users who have expressed an interest in working with us to develop service user involvement further, we have established 3 Community Expert Panels who will advise and assist the SP team, Providers and other partners on how to best develop housing related support services in Cumbria. So far, 150 service users have been recorded on to a database as being interested in service user involvement, and 11 of these have attended a 3 day training session around Peer reviewing. The Community Expert Panels are as follows:

·  Peer Reviewers (South Cumbria) – A 3 day training course has been held to develop a team of Peer Reviewers who will visit providers alongside SP contract officers to find out what the service users really think of the service being provided. In the future it is hoped that Peer reviewers will be offered a nationally accredited qualification – PEARL in personal and social development.

·  Mystery Shopping (North Cumbria) –We intend to train service users to carry out a mystery shopping exercise, where they will check that the services SP fund are doing their job in a professional, friendly and competent manner. This could be via telephone or in person.

·  Communications (West Cumbria) – We will be working with the service users in west Cumbria to update the Service User Involvement Strategy and review other SP leaflets and documents. It is hoped that in the future we could work with the County Councils Media Officer to develop the opportunity for service users to participate in surveys via text.

In return for their time and effort, service users attending exercises will be given a voucher for local shops.

Update by SP Partner Agencies

Eden District Council – Jo

·  Eden District has 24,939 houses to a population of 52,150.

·  Jo confirmed that in terms of their homeless presentations, over the last 2 years 11.7% were pregnant teenagers. There is also a need for accommodation for those aged 16-24years with children, and a need for supported accommodation for the over 25’s.

·  There has been a reduction in homelessness which peaked at 248 in 2003-04. 45 applications were made in 2008, 14 of which were deemed statutory homeless and 13 were made in January – June 2009, 6 of which were deemed statutory homeless. Out of 20, 18 of these had dependent children or were pregnant.

·  EDC funds a part time Prevention Officer at Eden Housing. 175 cases have been dealt with over the last year. The Prevention Officer highlighted a need for supported housing for single over 25’s. Many referrals go through prevention, not just homeless referrals.

·  Older People – The key issue is the predicted increase in population of older people. They predict a 95% increase in ages 60+ by 2031 and a 202% increase in 74-90 year olds by 2031. A joint initiative with SLDC is underway to assess the requirements for housing and support services for the elderly.

·  Young People – High support needs and challenging behaviour – No 16-17 year olds should be placed in a B&B. A more joined up approach is needed with Children’s Services, SP and housing authorities.

·  Young people in need including 16+17 year olds should be the responsibility of Children’s Services, need to work in partnership with them. Also need a range of provision e.g. supported lodgings.

·  Teenage Parents – 11.7% of homeless applicants are teenage parents. They are housed in temporary accommodation pending a permanent offer, generic floating support is available but no specific support is available for teenage parents.

Impact Housing – Duncan

·  5 Supporting People contracts with 6 safe houses and 11 self contained units for young people.

Service Strengths

·  The service is in high demand and the main referrals come from Let Go, Connexions and Eden Housing.

·  82% planned endings completed for quarter 4.

Service Limitations

·  Old buildings need renovating - Pategill House and Abbotts Bank.

·  Long term staff sickness.

·  The demand for Appleby Flats is very low as young people would rather be in Penrith.

·  Lots of issues regarding the lack of appropriate move-on accommodation.

Service Opportunities

·  Eden Foyer – trying to make stronger links with other agencies.

CASS Integrated Support Service - Mary Grace

Support services for offenders / those at risk of offending, substance mis-users and young single homeless offering:

·  Supported accommodation, long term floating support, short term floating support and housing and benefits advice schemes.

Service Strengths

·  Integration – can usually provide a service.

·  Choice / flexibility – can meet different types of needs.

·  Experienced and stable staff group.

·  Housing offender protocol.

Service Limitations

·  Accommodate a high percentage of ‘high risk’ priority clients which reduces access for other groups of offenders e.g. women offenders.

·  Cannot meet demand for supported accommodation.

·  Meeting the needs of more chaotic (particularly younger) offenders – scheme is low support.

Opportunities / Improvement

·  Additional units for high risk offenders.

·  Additional units for women offenders.

·  Alternative activities for residents.

·  Links with non-housing support agencies.

·  Research project – lead to improved practice and multi-agency support work.

Threats / Issues

·  Financial – end of the Big Lottery Fund next year.

·  Impact of serious offences by high risk offender – publicity hard to deal with.

·  National Probation Service changes to local Trust status

Croftlands Trust – Chris

Chris advised that the Castlegate scheme is very stretched in terms of demand for staff cover and support hours, especially out of hours, and this scheme would benefit from additional funding.

Service Strengths

·  Successful in move-on from supported housing to independent living

·  Shifting focus from Outputs to Outcomes.

·  Outcomes Star – Measures a service user’s journey of change enabling them to see how they have improved and therefore speeds up the moving-on process.

Service Limitations

·  Duration of occupancy.

Opportunities / Improvement

·  Move-on from residential care.

·  Support mental health problems.

·  Reduce admissions and duration of stay at the Hadrian Unit.

Threats / Issues

·  Absence of a mental health strategy.

·  The Tribal consulting report.

·  A need for more PCT funding for substance misuse supported housing.

Risk Taking - Barbara

·  Formed by Drug & Alcohol, Young People and Teenage Parent strategies with representatives from different agencies.

·  DASH is a new provider for Young People Sexual Health Services.

·  They are reducing teenage pregnancies and increasing the number of teenage parents in education/employment. Also reducing substance misuse amongst young people.

·  The Risk taking staff has lots of information/data regarding drug and alcohol and teenage parents which they aren’t sharing effectively so suggest that some sort of data sharing workshop could be set up.

Cumbria Travellers Programme – Anne

·  A small team which is well known within the gypsy and traveller communities which offer ‘cradle to grave’ services.

·  A recent survey has highlighted the need for more pitches in Cumbria as there are only 3 licensed sites at the moment.

·  The Penrith site is always at threat from closure.

·  The new site at Harker in Carlisle will be owned by Carlisle City Council.

·  However, more funding is needed to develop LA managed sites and there is funding from a further Govt initiative. .

Suggestions for Underspend

Suggestions were made to consider allocating the under spend on:

·  ‘Move on’ accommodation for all client groups, which could include shared properties on licence agreements (as currently used by CASS)

·  More floating support provision for Gypsies and travellers

·  Accommodation for people with more complex needs especially young people

·  Accommodation for high risk offenders and female offenders

·  Higher levels of support for younger chaotic offenders

Meeting finished at 13.00