Jobs will go as board bridge £10m ‘dreadful’ and ‘grim’ black hole

CASH CRISIS FACING SOCIAL CARE

Cuts to health and social care services in East Renfrewshire have been agreed to cover a “grim” financial deficit of almost £10 million.

Work to prioritise social care support to those in “substantial or critical” need only will continue while jobs are set to go as part of the approved savings package.

The area’s integration joint board – a partnership between the council and the NHS which directs health and social care services – is facing a funding shortfall of £9.8m in 2024-25.

Anne-Marie Monaghan, who chairs the board, said: “It’s grim. It’s been difficult for quite a while now and it really is starting to strike at the forefront of our public services in the way in which people are supported in East Renfrewshire.”

A report to the board stated the required level of savings could not be achieved “without impact on our workforce”.

It added: “We aim to mitigate the impact as far as possible and hope we can achieve the majority, if not all, staff changes through turnover and attrition.”

It continued: “However, service redesign and redeployment will be required.”

Savings of just under £9.8m have now been agreed while ‘redesign’ plans, aimed at saving around another £2m, are worked on.

Prioritising social care support, known as the ‘supporting people framework’ for those in “substantial or critical” need – where there are “very immediate risks to individuals” – is expected to save around £4m.

Rolling out the framework has taken longer than officials had expected but they believe it is “deliverable”.

Lesley Bairden, the health and social care partnership’s (HSCP) chief financial officer, said the budget included “some dreadfully difficult decisions”.

She added the length of time required to make changes to the supporting people framework had been underestimated but modelling has shown it is “horribly difficult but it is doable”.

Funding for the health and social care services is provided by the board’s two partners — the council and NHS. Pressures facing the HSCP include pay, inflation, an increasing population and demand, and the cost of prescribing. Phase one of a voluntary severance and early retirement programme saved around £780,000 with a second stage targeting £300,000 of savings.

A redesign of children’s services is set to save almost £400,000 while there is a plan to “top slice” the supplies budgets by 20 per cent to save £920,000.

A working group is considering charges for services with an income of £200,000 planned.

Council leader Owen

O’Donnell, Labour, said: “I think it’s very important to put into context that we are not alone in this – it’s not reassuring but we are not alone.

“IJBs across Scotland are facing very similar issues and savings targets.”

Julie Murray, chief officer of the HSCP, said the supporting people framework is “really challenging and we are getting a lot of pushback” but “some good alternatives” are being provided by the third sector.

“There is some really good practice and some mitigation happening but it is really challenging,” she added.

“It is not what social workers have come in to do, in terms of reducing care packages, but some of the outcomes will be good.”

Councillor Katie Pragnell, Labour, said: “This budget isn’t easy, I know all of us on this board didn’t go into social care or health to implement savings, or, to put it bluntly, cuts to services. We all care very much about our residents and we know this will hit

some of them.”