Agenda item

To receive the report of the Chief Officer Access and Care Delivery, Adult Social Care, to update the Community Committee on the progress with Strengths Based Social Care across the city, to draw attention to local features of the new approach to service delivery.

(Report attached)

The report of the Chief Officer Access & Care Delivery, Adult Social Care updated the Community Committee on the progress with Strengths Based Social Care across the city and focused on the local features of this new approach to service delivery.

Members were shown a short film and papers were tabled at the meeting.

In attendance at the meeting were:

Shona McFarlane, Deputy Director, Social Work and Adult Social Care Service

James Turner, Project Leader, Service Transformation

Fiona Martin, Learning Disability Service Delivery Manager

Sarah Hearn, Social Worker, Armley Neighbourhood Care Management Team

Members were informed that the new strengths based model establishes a way of delivering adult social work practice that is:

·  Values driven

·  Community focused in achieving outcomes

·  Empowering of staff

·  A partnership with local people

·  Builds on the asset based approached already in place in Leeds

The model moves away from eligibility and assessment towards a strengths based and person centred approach. Looking at what someone can do rather than what they can’t do.

Philip Hawley a regular attendee at the Community Committee, also a People’s Parliament Representative had appeared in the short film and offered to assist in presenting the item.

Philip explained to the Committee how the strengths based approach had helped him. He spoke about the strategy ‘Being Me’ which is to be sent to Members. Philip said that he now had more confidence and felt braver through the work that he had done with the services.

Members were informed of the following points:

·  The first talking point centre had been established at the New Wortley Community Centre

·  Talking Points for the Inner West are currently located at New Wortley Community Centre and Headingley Community Hub

·  It was acknowledged that the Inner West area could also use a Talking point in Bramley. However, no suitable venue had been found yet.

·  Venues need to be free not necessarily council owned, have access to WiFi, be easily accessible both in terms of accessing the building and transport links

·  The Social teams work collaboratively with services in the area including those services in the third sector.

·  It was acknowledged that although this is a new approach for the council this type of working has been used previously by the third sector

·  Assessment forms had been reduced from 28 pages to 2 pages

·  Although most of the conversations were held at the Talking Point centres should a home visit be requested this would still take place.

·  During the initial call customers are given more clarity about options open to them and ‘The What’s Out There Guide’ enables call handlers to connect customers to beneficial services in their community

·  A Rapid Response Team is now in place to deal with all crisis situations with the focus on making the person safe, and to look at short term work

·  The average wait for an appointment to meet with a social worker at a Talking Point centre is currently 10 days. This is much reduced timescales

·  Teams meet to ‘peer review’ cases which provides better support plans and increases team knowledge, understanding and introduces creative solutions

·  The teams work with a number of health partners across the city

The Committee discussed points including: Hospital discharges; feedback for Members when they had assisted in a referral; support for those who are in crisis and venues for Talking Point centres.

Philip said that he would provide an update at the next meeting.

RESOLVED – To:

a)  Note the submitted report

b)  Note the desire to return to the Community Committee Chairs Forum with a summary of this round of updates

c)  Consider how we further build relationships between Adults and Health and local communities and benefit from Members’ expert local knowledge