Decision details

To consider the Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector review

Further to Minute No. 48 of the meeting held on 15 January 2015, the Cabinet considered the report of the Director of Corporate Services which provided details of the review undertaken by officers of the services commissioned by the Council from the Voluntary, Community and Faith (VCF) Sector.

The report indicated that in broad terms, those services can be categorised by the following themes: Adult Health and Wellbeing; Children, Young People and Families; Information, Advice and Advocacy; Education, Training and Employability; and Faith and Worship.

It was proposed that discussions be held with the VCF organisations, and in the context of the proposals set out in the report, those discussions would explore the dependencies and interdependencies of proposals in terms of individual organisational impact, including the sustainability of the organisation, other sources and funding, as well as the use of Council funding to match for these funding sources.  They would also include the following considerations:-

·         The services offered by the organisations in terms of key themes of support e.g. domestic violence, mental health, children's services, social isolation and advocacy.

·         The locality presence of the organisations in terms of providing community access to service provision within locality area either by direct provision or by hosting provision.

·         Organisational leadership in terms of facilitated development of community capacity and capability and the promotion of community resilience. The discussions would also include funding provided to the VCF sector from the Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) of Southport and Formby and South Sefton, and officers from the CCGs will be part of that discussion as appropriate.

Decision Made:

That:

(1)       a new Integrated Youth Service be commissioned with an indicative budget of £270,000 and the specification for that commissioned service be agreed by the Cabinet Member for Children, Schools and Safeguarding;

(2)       a new Integrated Wellness Service be commissioned and the specification for that commissioned service be agreed as set out in Minute No. 18 below;

(3)       specific elements of Substance Misuse Services be commissioned in accordance with required budget reductions and the specification for those commissioned services be agreed by the Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing;

(4)       the Head of Communities be requested to undertake detailed discussions with Sefton Citizen’s Advice Bureau and Sefton Council for Voluntary Services with a view to undertaking a new commissioning process within the context set out in paragraph 5.2 of the report;

(5)       the Director of Social Care and Health be requested to undertake detailed discussions with the Sefton Carer’s Centre with a view to undertaking a new commissioning process within the context set out in paragraph 5.2 of the report;

(6)       the Head of Communities, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Communities and Housing implement budget reductions of £27,000 from the budget for voluntary sector infrastructure; and

(7)       the Head of Adult Social Care in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care implement budget reductions of £152,769 from the overall budget of £394,880 relating to small grants in that sector.

Reasons for Decision:

To implement the budget savings required and to work towards a more co-ordinated commissioning process for the VCF sector.

Alternative Options Considered and Rejected:

None.