Agenda item

The Chairman of the Adults and Safeguarding Committee introduced the item which sets out a number of recommendations on how the Independent Living Fund transfer will be managed in Barnet and invited Jon Dickinson (Assistant Director, Adults and Communities) to join the table.

Mr Dickinson briefed the Committee about the contents of the report and noted that from 30 June 2015 the Independent Living Fund will close and that from the 1^st of July 2015 funding will be transferred to the Council. The Committee heard that ILF provides funding for disabled people with high care needs to live independently in their own homes.

The Chairman noted the corrections at paragraphs 1.18, 1.19 and 2.2.1 (page 26-27 of the Agenda Report pack) and that the corrected version should read:

1.18    In Barnet there are 11 Group one users (pre-1993 applicants) who receive a total of £374,000 (gross) per year, £334,000,889  £334,889 (net) and 79 Group two users (post-1993 applicants) who receive a total of £1,508,000 (gross) per year, £1,240,000 (net). The gross amount is the value of the Independent Living Fund payment before a client contribution, the net amount is the actual amount paid after deducting client contribution.

1.19    In addition to receiving payments from the Independent Living Fund, the 90 people transferring across have been assessed as having care needs by Adults and Communities. There are 79 87 people receiving care services provided by the London Borough of Barnet at a cost of £1,830,000 £1.99 million a year.

2.2.1   There are 79 87 people receiving Independent Living Fund payments who also receive care services either as a managed personal budget or as a direct payment from the Council. The remaining 11 3 users (all Group one) do not receive care funding from the Council and rely on funding from the Independent Living Fund to pay for their care.

In response to queries from the Committee, Mr Dickinson informed the Committee that an update report will be brought back to the Committee in relation to this item in six months’ time with feedback incorporated from service users. (Action: Adults and Communities team and Governance Service)

Ms Wakeling briefed the Committee around funding arrangements and stated that all users of Independent Living Fund payments are also required to undergo a financial assessment. Ms Wakeling informed the Committee that following a review of care needs, a scheme of transitional protection is proposed to mitigate against any reductions for those receiving ILF funding. Ms Wakeling further noted that where there is a reduction in support provided, this will not take place until six months after the review date.

The Chairman moved to the vote. Votes were recorded as follows:

RESOLVED that:

1.            That the Adults and Safeguarding Committee approve the recommendations on the transfer of the Independent Living Fund as set out in paragraphs 2.2.4, 2.3.3 and 2.4.3 of this report:

1(a)     That approval is given to the Adults and Communities Delivery Unit to assess the care and support needs of Independent Living Fund users in accordance with the national adult social care eligibility criteria for adults with care needs, adopted by Barnet Council in April 2015 in line with the requirements of the Care Act 2014.

1(b)     That approval is given to assess financial contributions towards care in accordance with Barnet Council’s adult social care community based Fairer Contributions Policy.

1(c)     That approval is given for a 6 month transitional protection scheme for those individuals who require it during the transition from Independent Living Fund financial support to Barnet Council adult social care support.