Agenda item

Consideration was given to the report.  Members asked whether or not officers could be confident that the proposed budget gave the best estimation of the budget that was needed for the next year.  Ms Sandra Taylor, the Council’s Corporate Director of Adult Social Care and Health advised that officers had spent months working through the growth model for the next five years to be able to set the 2026/27 budget, which included some catch up and rebasing.  Consideration had also been given to the drivers for increased costs which included the increase in demand and the increase in the cost of care (which had risen exponentially).  The detailed model had looked at every primary support reason but focussed on how costs and the market were expected to be managed over the next three years. 

Members were advised that there had been a decrease in the number of older people needing a care home placement but that there had been an increasing number of younger people with special educational needs that would eventually need support from adult social care.  The Burroughs nursing beds and other care services that had been developed in house would help to alleviate the cost pressure. 

Mr Steve Muldoon, the Council’s Corporate Director of Finance, advised that the starting point had been to understand the current position and to consider demand and deliverability.  There had been ongoing costs that had not been included that should have been incorporated into the budget so funds had been put into the base to cover this expenditure.  Insofar as modelling was concerned, officers had looked back over recent years at the different rates of growth, and how this had changed, to provide a more realistic position. 

The savings proposals had been discussed and assumptions probed at the challenge sessions with Cabinet Members and Corporate Directors.  Pressure would now need to be maintained to ensure that delivery of these savings retained momentum and detailed delivery plans had been developed for complex areas to ensure success. 

Members expressed concern that delivery plans only worked if there was accountability.  Mr Muldoon advised that the savings had been identified by the directorates themselves and had been supported and owned by the relevant Corporate Director and their team, with a specific person identified as responsible for the delivery of each project.  To ensure that the responsible officer was held to account for delivering the savings, the higher risk projects would be discussed at monthly meetings and CMT would receive regular updates on the savings progress.  An app had been developed which could be used by Heads of Service to monitor their savings performance and the onus would be on the Corporate Directors to ensure that the savings stayed on track (a high proportion of the savings within adult social care would be transformational). 

Mr Martyn Storey, the Council’s Head of Finance – Adult Social Care and Health, advised that he would need to work closely with the Corporate Director and her team to ensure that the proposed savings were delivered.  The projects would look at how savings would be measured, when they would be delivered, etc, so that any slippage could be identified quickly. 

Although cuts did not seem to be being made in adult social care, the increase in demand for services seemed to be relentless and Members queried whether there was any contingency in place.  Ms Taylor advised that officers had looked back at the influences that had increased or decreased the numbers in the past.  As the number of residents in Hillingdon aged 65+ had been growing, it was likely that demand for services from this group would also increase.  The number of younger people with complex mental health needs had also been growing.  Demand had been scrutinised along with the average cost of support for this client group and consideration was now being given to transformational work that would impact / reduce costs.  A lot of early intervention services had been purchased from suppliers which then prevented residents from needing to use the Council’s more expensive services (lessons had also been learnt from ADASS and London ADASS).  Contingencies had been put in place to help address seasonal fluctuations in demand. 

Although it was recognised that some additional information had been available within the Cabinet report, concern was expressed that no narrative had been provided to support the suggested savings projects which made it difficult for Members to comment or provide them with confidence.  A request was made that each line include an explanation of the likely impact of the savings on staff and service delivery and an explanation be included in relation to the Council’s ability to respond agilely if any action being taken was not working. 

Members requested an explanation as to which fees and charges would be increased as this information had not been included in the report.  Ms Taylor noted that Hillingdon’s fees and charges had always been on the low side when compared to neighbouring authorities.  She would send further information in the increased fees and charges to the Democratic, Civic and Ceremonial Manager for circulation to the Committee. 

Ms Taylor apologised that Members had not had the narrative that they had wanted and confirmed that this information was available.  She would ensure that a narrative was put together for each savings proposal and pass this information to the Democratic, Civic and Ceremonial Manager for circulation to the Committee. 

It was recognised that there had been an increase in demand for services when the Covid pandemic had started and Members queried when this would start to reduce.  Ms Taylor advised that early intervention had been proactively applied in Hillingdon to help residents to live independent lives.  The number of starters and leavers had stabilised in the last twelve months but there had been huge fluctuations in who these residents were during Covid.  Furthermore, there had been residents that had not had appropriate daytime care activity whose needs had since increased.

Members noted that there had been an increase in the costs associated with SEND transportation.  Ms Taylor advised that the SEND service had worked diligently to manage this and were now in a situation where they did not have to transport many children and young people out of the Borough (eligibility was assessed in relation to distance in the Borough). 

The Council had previously been offering a gold standard service to everyone but increasing costs and demand had meant that careful consideration was now given to needs.  Ms Taylor advised that Telecareline had been around for a long time and offered a good service in Hillingdon.  However, the core offer needed to be improved to ensure that residents got what they needed rather than providing everyone with a gold service.  Furthermore, as old equipment was being replaced, the new items being swapped in had been labelled with information about how the equipment could be returned when no longer needed. 

RESOLVED:  That:

1.    Ms Sandra Taylor send further information in the increased fees and charges to the Democratic, Civic and Ceremonial Manager for circulation to the Committee;

2.    Ms Sandra Taylor put together a narrative for each savings proposal and pass this information to the Democratic, Civic and Ceremonial Manager for circulation to the Committee;

3.    the draft revenue budget and Medium-Term Financial Strategy proposals for 2026/27 to 2030/31 relating to services within the Committee’s remit be noted; and

4.    the Democratic, Civic and Ceremonial Manager be asked to draft comments on behalf of the Health and Social Care Select Committee based on their discussion to be agreed by the Chair of the Committee in consultation with the Labour Lead for submission to Cabinet for consideration as part of the final budget proposals to be presented to Council in February 2026.