Tenders are being evaluated for one of the largest adult care contracts ever offered by the York Council.
The 7 year contract will cost taxpayers and customers around £75 million a year.
The terms of the contract are to, “Care at Home (Domiciliary Care) “Service” will be delivered in the main in the customer’s own home (including community based settings such as Independent Living Communities), but also in the community where it is appropriate to enable the Customer to achieve their agreed outcomes. The “Service” is available to all adults aged 18 years and over who live within the City of York Council boundaries and have been referred to the “Service” by Adult Social Care (ASC)”.
RISE (Reducing Inequalities, Supporting Employment) is a support programme that offers one-to-one advice and employability support, empowering those involved to overcome both personal and professional challenges.
These include:
unemployment
mental health issues
physical health challenges
autism and neurodivergence
financial struggles
domestic abuse
housing instability
basic skills and training needs
inclusion and diversity concerns
support for self-employment and carers and people in care
Funded by City of York Council through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, so far this programme has helped 65 people from various backgrounds boost their confidence so they can go to work.
RISE is one of 25 projects taking place in the city, using UK Shared Prosperity Fund money. City of York Council has invested 98% of its UKSPF allocation so far (£1.8 million) to fund initiatives that range from business support, supporting the voluntary sector to helping boost skills and help people into work as well as invest in our high streets.
The average amount of time each individual gets support for is 11 weeks, with every person giving the programme 5 out of 5. The project has proven so successful that the council, using UK Shared Prosperity Funding has agreed to extend the programme for another year.
63% of those the programme has supported so far disclosed themselves as a disabled person or had a work-limiting condition. 54% lived in jobless households and 23% had dependents at home.
The programme combines emotional support with practical employability guidance. The programme has successfully helped participants like Michael, a 30-year-old who, prior to joining RISE, struggled with social anxiety and unemployment:
I was scared to go outside and even look at people.
With 67% of participants disclosing a mental health condition, RISE’s success in addressing such challenges and fostering emotional well-being is evident in Michael’s story.
Ben, Michael’s mentor, played a pivotal role in building trust and fostering Michael’s emotional well-being. Michael highlights:
Ben was warm, kind, and understanding – that made it really easy to be open and reveal my honest thoughts, struggles, and history. After establishing that trust, my emotional well-being was on the rise, which made the prospect of work/employment very attainable.
“Ben has taught me to think in a way that when I do fall in a hole, I have the knowledge and tools to get back up.”
In addition to emotional support, RISE provides much needed employment support, helping individuals set short-term and long-term career goals, as well as creating effective CVs that enhance employment prospects. Michael reflects on his progress:
Having these goals and something to aim for really puts weight and meaning to the centre of my life and has acted as a springboard to my mental wellbeing.
Another person to benefit from the programme is Kate who reached out to RISE after deciding to become a dental health nurse. Her mentor has been helping her get the necessary functional skills as well as providing CV feedback.
City of York Council has won the national handy person scheme of the year award which supports residents to live well, safely, and independently at home.
Last week, the National Healthy Housing Awards recognised the Healthy Homes Handyperson service’s impact across the city. By making minor adjustments in a home and giving personalised advice, the service can support someone’s discharge from hospital, reduce their risk of falls, help residents get out into their community and improve their wellbeing.
The service offers a low cost or free service for customers, with a joiner visiting the home of anyone at risk of falling to carry out small works free of charge, such as fitting a handrail. The joiners are trained to spot other falls hazards and can refer at-risk residents to a Falls Prevention Practitioner, also within the service, for more tailored advice.
The service can also recommend and fit small energy-efficiency measures like draught excluders and brighter low-energy light bulbs so the resident can better afford their energy bills and keep warmer and healthier.
Team members are also building links across the city, such as with North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue and the NHS to support referrals and build their awareness of falls risks.ence which I hope makes even more people aware of, use and benefit from the service.”
We are pleased to be inviting applications for social workers to join our teams supporting children and young people in care. This is a fantastic opportunity for someone who is committed to working with children and young people as their corporate parent and achieving best possible outcomes.
We have a clear career pathway for social workers in York. We welcome applications from newly qualified social workers through to those with more experience. If you have more experience we may offer to directly recruit you as a Senior Social Worker at a higher grade. Please speak to us if this is of interest.
We are 5-minute walk to the train station and have a number of car schemes for social workers to use. We offer a competitive salary with generous staff benefit such an annual pay increment.
If you are an ASYE you will be part of our incredible academy and the support of advance social work practitioners.
The Lowfields Action Group Facebook page is reporting that a start on developing two of the 3 remaining vacant plots at Lowfield Green is being held up by the new Labour leadership at the York Council (click)
Vacant elderly extra care home site at Lowfields
Lowfields Action Group Facebook pageclick to view
One of the plots has been scheduled for the provision of an elderly care facility of over 12 years. Initial plans for a care home on the site of the old school building were widely welcomed by residents in 2010. The plans were shelved when Labour last took control of the Council in 2011.
This indecision means that 2027 still seems to be the earliest date that the whole development could be completed, with all plant off site.
It was supposed to have been finished by the autumn of this year
Aresponse to a Freedom of Information request has now been published by the Action Group (right)
It appears that traffic pressures will only be eased intermittently as the link road to Tudor Road will be opened for a short time before Christmas but then will be closed again for some time as further work take place.
It is a similar limbo for long outstanding repairs to Lowfields Drive and Dijon Avenue. The potholed carriageways, according to the Council, can’t be resurfaced until the development is completed (and that seems to be three years away at least).
In the meantime, some remedial work is promised but when this will take place – and the extent of the work – remains unclear.
Both existing – and new – Lowfields residents have been treated very poorly by the York Council.
The authority promises to improve communications in the future.
It needs to do so consistently and to provide a firm timetable for the completion of all outstanding works in the area.
Damaged road surfaces in the Lowfields areaneed resurfacing
York Health and Care Partnership will hold a Health and Care Recruitment, Careers and Volunteering Event next month (Saturday 4th November) to showcase the opportunities available across the city.
The drop-in event will be held from 10am to 2pm at City of York Council’s West Offices, Station Rise, York, and will provide an opportunity for individuals to find out more about health and care related opportunities including educational courses, volunteering, careers, and current recruitment options.
Visitors will be able to find out more about what’s on offer in York from over 20 employers and organisations with stands at the event, with information available on a wide range of options including;
Adult Learning, including functional skills in English and maths
Apprenticeships
Fostering and Adoption
Undergraduate courses
Post graduate courses
Volunteering
Vacancies within charitable organisations
Vacancies within independent social care organisations
Vacancies within local authority adult and children’s social care services
Vacancies within the NHS
Non direct patient care vacancies (such as catering, cleaning, maintenance, gardening roles) across health and care organisations
Visitors to the event may get the opportunity to be interviewed for jobs and other opportunities on the day.
The event will also provide an opportunity for employers to find out more about apprenticeships, student placements and other initiatives to support their workplace.ts will want to find out more about the jobs and training available to people of all ages across the city.”
No prior appointment or booking is required, and anyone who wishes to attend can simply turn up on the day of the event.
The scale of the budget problems faced by the York Council has partly been revealed in a report on adult social care prepared for a “scrutiny” committee which is taking place next week.
A £6.8 million (15.1%) overspend is forecast.
York Council social care budget update
So far £3.8 million in mitigation measures have been found,
The council has run with overspending on social care for several years despite a 2% increase in Council Tax being ring-fenced to help the beleaguered service.
The council is saying that it will need to cut other public services to make up the deficit. But to put that in context, the overspends are more than the total leisure budget for the City.
So economies will have to be made in care service. A similar challenge awaits in children’s care services.
The report says,
Austerity, the pandemic and cost of living crisis have meant that more people than ever feel the need to come to the local authority seeking support. Our population is ageing and has the increased additional needs this brings.
This is at the same time as increased additional responsibilities around the delivery of high quality, personalised, accessible and affordable support have come through the ‘People at the Heart of Care’ national strategy and regulatory requirements of the care quality commission, without the necessary additional resource to fund this.
York Council report October 2023
The report goes on to say “In order to manage within budget, we will see significant reductions in the price we pay, the numbers of people we provide commissioned services to, the amount of the services which people receive and the type of commissioned service we provide
During Carer’s Week (5-11 June) and to support carers and the invaluable work they do in York, a consultation has been launched to improve breaks for carers.
We understand from feedback from carers that the caring role can be rewarding as well as challenging. We know that having breaks can make all the difference.
Carer breaks might include short regular opportunities or longer, more complex breaks – and the whole spectrum in between. We’re looking for ways to improve carer breaks in the way they are developed and offered as well as ensuring more flexibility to meet the needs of carers.
Your input into the consultation will help shape the way we provide assessments and support to carers of all ages in the future.
A new safeguarding campaign is encouraging everyone in York to help prevent and stop the abuse of adults by learning more about it.
The council’s ‘Know the signs’ campaign is urging people to learn more about the different kinds of abuse which adults can face, how to spot the signs of it taking place and, if seen or suspected, report them.
Abuse takes many forms – domestic, emotional, financial, modern slavery, physical, sexual or discriminatory or organisational abuse – and can have devastating and long-lasting effects. Knowing more about what that abuse might involve and how is affects people, and then reporting any concerns to the council or police, can help prevent abuse happening or taking place.
The ’Know the signs’ campaign is building on the momentum of the region’s successful Safeguarding Week which hosted over 50 learning and information sessions last week.
York News Focus 