Argyll care bosses agree to fewer cuts

Care packages to come under financial spotlight

Argyll’s health and care chiefs have dropped deep service cuts this year, and instead will focus on a financial recovery plan to plug a budget gap.

The new plan includes reducing high-cost care packages, agency and locum posts, and delaying recruitment for staff vacancies.

The Health and Social Care Partnerships (HSCP), jointly run by health boards and councils, manage those integrated services in each region. Each HSCP is governed by an Integration Joint Board (IJB), which makes the decisions, facing ‘very challenging’ finances in Argyll and Bute.

Argyll and Bute HSCP’s most controversial cost-saving proposals – to axe council-run care homes, day care and learning disability centres – were rejected by the IJB on March 28, following public outrage when the plans were leaked.

HSCP officers were asked to ‘develop alternative savings proposals’ for the IJB on Wednesday May 30 in Argyll and Bute Council’s HQ at Kilmory Castle.

A report stated the budget gap for 2018-19, following March’s IJB meeting, stood at £2.4 million, but this has since reduced to £1.6 million, ‘due to agreement to delay repayment of 2017-18 overspends by NHS Highland and Argyll and Bute’.

The report continued: ‘It has not been possible to identify further savings in the timescale required which would be in line with the strategic plan and deliverable in the 2018-19 financial year. Instead an approach to financial recovery is proposed.

‘This may be perceived to be a high risk approach in terms of delivering financial balance in 2018-19 but through tight financial management, including focused monitoring and reporting of the financial position and support to budget managers, benefits from cost control and reduction may potentially offset the savings shortfall.

‘The delivery of the approved savings requires to be the main focus, as it is clear that if there continue to be delays with delivery of service changes that are planned to deliver £10.6 million of savings during 201819, then financial balance will be unlikely to be achieved.’

The HSCP’s financial recovery plan lists several ‘required actions’, including a review of care-at-home packages, ‘in areas where the provision is disproportionately higher than in other areas, particularly in the west of Argyll’.

There will also be a ‘review of all high cost care packages with a view to reducing [them]’, which risks ‘resistance from services users and their families and also front-line practitioners to reducing care packages already in place. Any change to services would be based on appropriate assessment and review’.

Officers will also ‘review current staffing establishment and closely scrutinise vacancies’, and ‘apply an appropriate delay to filling positions’, but warned: ‘Delays in recruiting to positions may have impact on the timely provision of services and may also impact on other staff.’

The use of agency and locum posts will also be reviewed to reduce them.