Local Commissioning Plan - Wrexham County Borough Council

 Supporting People
Local Commissioning Plan
2016/17 to 2018/19
1
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Wrexham County Borough Council: Council Plan
Our Purpose:
‘To ensure that Wrexham and its people are
supported to fulfil their potential and prosper’
3
Contents
1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................5 2 Strategic Priorities ...........................................................................................................6 3 Current Funding by Client Group .................................................................................18 4 Service Development - Progress Since 2015/16 Local Commissioning Plan ............19 5 Need and Service Gaps .................................................................................................21 6 Priorities and Proposals for Service Planning.............................................................32 7 Action Plan Year 1 ..........................................................................................................37 8 Equality Impact Assessment .........................................................................................38 9 Funding ...........................................................................................................................38 4
1 Introduction
Wrexham County Borough Council delivers, and enables the delivery of, services to people who live
in, work in and visit the County Borough. The services provided include education, social services,
housing, planning, environment and leisure. The Council continues to face reducing resources and is
reshaping services to best support and enable local people to prosper whilst prioritising our most
vulnerable residents.
The Supporting People Programme
The Supporting People Programme provides housing related support to vulnerable people to help
enable them to live as independently as possible. This could be in people’s own homes, in hostels,
sheltered housing or other specialist supported accommodation. It can provide complementary
support for people who may also need personal or medical care but it cannot fund care provision.
What is the Supporting People Local Commissioning Plan?
The Wrexham Supporting People Local Commissioning Plan (LCP) provides a summary of the
Council’s Supporting People commissioning intentions for the coming years, along with a Spend
Plan. The LCP outlines the need for housing-related support funded through the Supporting People
Programme Grant (SPPG).
The LCP was developed taking into consideration a number of factors:





A reducing Supporting People Programme Grant and WCBC Contribution making up the
Supporting People Budget in Wrexham
Evaluating services against guidance issued by Welsh Government in 2012
Reviewing all contracts funded through the Supporting People Programme Grant
Implementing and ensuring compliance with any changes to the Supporting People
Programme Guidance
Continued monitoring as to the impact of Welfare Reforms on housing-related support services
What happens next?
The LCP will be submitted to the Regional Collaborative Committee (RCC) for North Wales,
established as a requirement of the Supporting People Programme Grant (SPPG) Guidance (Wales)
2012. The RCC is responsible for analysing local authority plans and developing a regional plan for
the area.
The Wrexham SP team remain committed to ensuring that vulnerable citizens continue to receive the
support they need to enable them to:





have a good quality of life
feel safe and secure in their homes
enjoy a healthy and active lifestyle
feel valued and able to contribute to the communities in which they live
be supported to live as independently as possible for as long as possible
With the continuing prospect of significant budget reductions, this remains a challenge. We will
continue to ensure that the programme commissions services which are strategically relevant, of high
quality and will deliver value for money.
5
2 Strategic Priorities
The strategic approach underpinning this Local Commissioning Plan (LCP) is linked to local and
national frameworks for housing and support such as the Welsh Government National Housing
Strategy, the Local Housing Strategy for Wrexham, the strategic priorities in the Council Plan 2015 2017 and the priorities set by the Local Service Board in ‘Our Wrexham’ Plan 2013 – 2024.
The LCP also contributes to the Welsh Government’s objectives for tackling poverty as outlined in
‘Building Resilient Communities: Taking forward the Tackling Poverty Action Plan’ and updated in
The Tackling Poverty Action Plan Annual Report 2015; and is responsive to the provisions of the
Housing (Wales) Act 2014 and Social Care and Wellbeing Act 2014.
Supporting People Outcomes
The LCP provides a framework for the commissioning and procurement of housing-related support
schemes through the Supporting People programme. These schemes are required by Welsh
Government, in accordance with the Supporting People Programme Grant Guidance to deliver
outcomes for the individuals that they support, in the following key areas:
 Promoting personal and community safety
1. Feeling safe
2. Contributing to the safety and well-being of themselves and others

3.
4.
5.
Promoting independence and control
Managing accommodation
Managing relationships
Feeling part of the community

6.
7.
8.
Promoting economic progress and financial control
Managing money
Engaging in education / learning
Engaging in employment / voluntary work
 Promoting health and well-being
9. Physically healthy
10. Mentally healthy
11. Leading a healthy and active lifestyle
Supporting People Links to Strategic Priorities
Strategy/
Plan/
Framework
Welsh
Government
National
Housing
Strategy
Section
The Welsh Government National Housing
Strategy Improving Lives and Communities:
Homes in Wales (2010) identifies three priority
strands:



Links to Supporting People
The LCP contributes chiefly to the third
of these national priority strands by
ensuring appropriate and effective
housing-related support services are
provided to meet identified needs,
Providing more housing of the right type including those of vulnerable and
and offering more choice
minority groups within the local
Improving homes and communities, community
including the energy efficiency of new and
existing homes
Improving housing-related services and
support, particularly for vulnerable people
and people from minority groups
6
Strategy/
Plan/
Framework
Local
Housing
Strategy
Section
Links to Supporting People
The Wrexham Local Housing Strategy 2013 –
2018 reflects the three priority strands of the
National
Housing
Strategy
within
the
overarching theme of building sustainable
communities.
The Supporting People team were
actively engaged with the development
of the Local Housing Strategy, and
continue to ensure that the LCP
remains abreast of local strategic
housing priorities.
The three priority strands are:
1. More housing more choice
2. Improving homes and communities
3. Better services to improve people’s lives
Our
Wrexham
Plan 20132024
As with the National Housing Strategy,
the LCP chiefly contributes to the third
theme of the Local Housing Strategy
by enabling the provision of supported
housing services in response to
identified need in the local community.
These services can enhance or
maintain
independence;
improve
safety, well-being and prosperity; and
prevent homelessness. Through the
review and, where necessary, the
reconfiguration of services, the LCP
will ensure optimum use of Supporting
People funding to achieve value for
money and the most appropriate
service provision to meet identified
local needs.
Our Wrexham Plan 2013 -2024, produced by
the Local Service Board (LSB) sets three core
priorities:

Making Wrexham a place where people The LCP supports the provision of
can live independently and are healthy schemes that enable people to attain
independence and control over their
and active
lives and lead a healthy and active
lifestyle.

Making Wrexham a place with a strong, The LCP supports the provision of
schemes that promote economic
resilient and responsible economy
progress by encouraging people to
engage in education, training and
employment.

Making Wrexham a place that’s safe and The LCP supports the provision of
schemes that help people to feel safe
where everyone feels included
and included in their community and
contribute to their own and community
safety.
The Council The Council Plan identifies priorities within the
Plan 2015 - three strands of economy, people, and place.
2017
7
Strategy/
Plan/
Framework
Section
Links to Supporting People
Economy: creating a vibrant, diverse and The LCP provides a framework for the
inclusive economy
commissioning and procurement of
housing-related support schemes that
E1: People want to live, work, learn, visit and will enable economic progress and
invest here
financial independence by assisting
people to manage their money well
E2: Businesses can locate and grow here
and to engage in education, training,
and paid or voluntary work. This will
E3: People can prosper as individuals in their enable people supported by the
communities
schemes to prosper and make a
positive contribution to the local
economy.
People: raising aspirations, creating confidence The LCP contributes to the People
strand of the Council Plan by enabling
and promoting opportunity
the provision of housing-related
support
schemes
that
promote
PE1: All children and young people have
optimum independence, safety, wellpositive aspirations, learn and achieve their
being and opportunity for a range of
potential
people, including older, younger and
vulnerable people. Schemes procured
PE2: Children and young people are
through the LCP will be expected to
safeguarded
encourage personal and financial
independence; enable access to
PE3: People feel, and are, safe and secure
education and employment; support
integration and participation in the life
PE4: All people are enabled to make healthy
of the community; and promote health,
choices
well-being and safety.
PE5: All vulnerable older people are safe, and
have optimal health, independence and wellbeing
PE6: Welsh language and culture is promoted
and supported
Place – investing in attractive, safe and
inclusive communities
PL1: Homes that meet people’s needs and
aspirations
PL2: An environmentally responsible place
The LCP contributes to the Place
strand of the Council Plan by
supporting the provision of schemes
which assist people to care for their
own homes, to feel safe and included
in their communities, and to contribute
to community safety and well-being.
PL3: Communities with sustainable, attractive
settlements, neighbourhoods, buildings and
spaces
PL4: Well-connected communities
8
Strategy/
Plan/
Framework
Tackling
Poverty
Section
Links to Supporting People
In Building Resilient Communities: Taking
forward the Tackling Poverty Action Plan the
Welsh Government (WG) refreshes the original
Tackling Poverty Action Plan (2012-2016), and
identifies Supporting People as having a role in
mitigating the impact of poverty by helping to
ensure fair access to healthcare, housing,
financial and digital services.
Nationally, Supporting People grant funding
assists 70,000 people to live independently and
sustain their accommodation; and helps to
provide employment by funding 10,000 full-time
equivalent jobs in support services.
Building Resilient Communities identifies the
Communities First programme to empower
communities as WG’s starting point for
achieving change. In order to make
communities healthier, wealthier, more skilled
and better informed, this programme identifies
three main objectives:
1: Prosperous communities
The LCP helps to build prosperous
communities by supporting services
that enable people to manage money;
engage in education and learning; and
engage in employment. In addition,
through the appropriate management
of funding provision to support
services, the LCP will help to enable
employment within these services.
2: Learning communities
The LCP will support services that
enable people to engage in education,
learning and training, thus helping to
invest skills into the community.
3: Healthier communities
The LCP contributes to healthier
communities by assisting the provision
of services that support physical and
mental health and promote healthy
and active lifestyles. In addition,
services commissioned through the
LCP will enable people to feel part of
their community; and will promote
community well-being by helping
people to feel safe and to contribute to
their own safety and well-being and
that of the community.
9
Strategy/
Plan/
Framework
Section
Links to Supporting People
The Tackling Poverty Action Plan Annual
Report 2015 adds new commitments to the
Plan in response to two new objectives added
to the revised Child Poverty Strategy published
by WG in March 2015. These new objectives
are:
 To use all available means to create a
strong economy and labour market in
Wales to reduce in-work poverty
 To help families increase their household
income through effective financial and
debt advice.
The LCP supports the revised
commitments of the Tackling Poverty
Action Plan by assisting the provision
of services that support people to
engage with employment and training;
maximise their income and their
employment potential; manage money
and attain or sustain financial
independence; and engage positively
with the community.
By assisting support provision in these
areas, and promoting partnership
working with housing providers and
other services, the LCP contributes to
mitigate the impacts of welfare reform.
The commitments added to the Tackling
Poverty Action Plan in response to these new
objectives include measures to support a strong
economy and sustainable employment
opportunities; mitigate the impacts of welfare
reform; improve the quality and supply of
affordable housing, particularly smaller (1 bed
or 2 bed) units; and address food poverty, inwork poverty and rural poverty.
Wrexham’s
Tackling
Poverty
Strategy
2015 - 18
The LCP supports the outcomes of
Wrexham’s Tackling Poverty Strategy sits
Wrexham’s Tackling Poverty Strategy
within the context of the national Tackling
2015-18 by:
Poverty Action Plan, and of the Local Service
Board (LSB) Plan, Our Wrexham Plan 20132024; and contributes to the outcomes of these
 Assisting the provision of
Plans. Wrexham’s Tackling Poverty Strategy is
schemes that promote
focussed on four outcomes:
economic progress and
financial control – including
1. People in Wrexham are prosperous
engagement with training
learning and employment.
2. People in Wrexham are healthy
 Assisting the provision of
schemes that promote health
3. People in Wrexham are engaged in
and wellbeing
learning
 Assisting the provision of
schemes that promote personal
4. People in Wrexham feel and are safe
and community safety
The high level strategy aims to improve the way
the LSB and other organisations in Wrexham
work together to understand, prevent and
combat poverty.
The LCP promotes partnership
working between support providers,
housing providers and other agencies
to provide services that promote
economic progress and help to
The Communities First Programme (see below) address the causes and effects of
is recognised as a starting point for delivering
poverty.
Tackling Poverty strategic outcomes.
10
Strategy/
Section
Plan/
Framework
Communities Communities First is a community-focused,
tackling poverty programme from Welsh
First
Government. WCBC is the Lead Delivery Body
for administration of the programme in
Wrexham.
Links to Supporting People
Supporting People will work alongside
Communities First to support Tackling
Poverty priority themes by
commissioning services that:

Communities First includes the three priority
themes of the national and local Tackling
Poverty Strategies:


Promote economic progress
and financial control
Support engagement with
training and learning
Promote physical and mental
health and wellbeing and
support healthy and active
lifestyles
 Prosperous Communities
 Learning Communities
 Healthy Communities
The main activities of the programme include:
employability and employment support;
financial capacity; digital inclusion; essential
skills; lifelong learning; and physical and mental By commissioning and funding
services that promote and encourage
health.
engagement with training, learning,
It is anticipated that the programme for 2016 – volunteering and employment
17 will need to demonstrate a greater focus on opportunities, the Supporting People
programme will support and
employability and working to assist people
complement the aims of Communities
towards employment. In addition a
First and Communities for Work
Communities for Work programme will
initiatives.
commence in Communities First clusters in
early 2016: this programme is supported by the
European Social Fund through WG and will
work to increase employment for both long-term
unemployed and economically inactive adults
over the age of 25; and young people aged 1624 not in employment, education or training.
Supporting People will look to work
WG has indicated that Communities First Lead closely with Communities First to
develop commissioning and funding
Delivery Bodies will need to accommodate a
approaches that make the best
budget reduction of at least 10% in 2016-17
possible use of all available funding
resources.
WG’s Vibrant and Viable Places regeneration
framework invests in Communities First areas,
town centres and coastal communities to
develop vibrant, viable and sustainable
communities with a strong local economy and
good quality of life. £10.5m has been secured
from WG for a variety of physical regeneration
projects in Wrexham that will help to tackle
poverty, improve employment and learning
opportunities, increase housing supply and
strengthen communities.
11
Strategy/
Plan/
Framework
Families
First
Section
Links to Supporting People
Families First is an innovative programme that
promotes the development, by local authority
areas, of effective multi-agency systems and
support, with a clear emphasis on prevention
and early intervention for families, particularly
those living in poverty. Families First is a key
response to the Welsh Government’s Child
Poverty Strategy. The strategy has three
strategic objectives:
Supporting People can assist and
complement the work of Families First
through the provision of housingrelated support services to single
parents and couples with children that
will enable them to:



reducing the numbers of families living in
workless households;
improving the skills of parents/carers and
young people living in low-income
households, so they can secure wellpaid employment; and
reducing inequalities that exist in health,
education and economic outcomes for
children and families by improving the
outcomes of the poorest - with a focus
on supporting families to achieve better
outcomes for children.
Families First must demonstrate that it can
improve population outcomes in relation to
tackling child poverty and four national
outcomes have been identified:











Manage their money
Engage with training, learning
and education
Access employment and
volunteering opportunities
Feel safe and keep themselves
and others safe in their
community
Be physically and mentally
healthy and have a healthy and
active lifestyle
Look after their home
Manage relationships with
others and be part of the
community.
Supporting People will look to work
working age people in low income
with Families First where possible to
families gain, and progress within
enable the most effective use to be
employment;
made of available funding
children, young people and families, in or
at risk of poverty, achieve their potential;
children, young people and families are
healthy, safe and enjoy well-being; and
families are confident, nurturing, and
resilient.
The local programme in Wrexham consists of
five projects focusing on activities to support
young people in education, support for parents
including parenting, family support and tenancy
support, employment support, welfare rights
and debt advice, play services and a range of
services for children with disabilities.
12
Strategy/
Plan/
Framework
The Housing
(Wales) Act
2014
Section
Links to Supporting People
The Welsh Government has made it clear that
they expect planning for the use of Supporting
People funds to focus upon the delivery of
efficient and effective services to prevent
homelessness. Much of the support delivered
through the SP Programme Grant prevents or
reduces the need for more costly interventions
by other services such as Homelessness,
Health, Social Services and Criminal Justice
agencies. This was emphasised in November
2014 in a letter to Heads of Housing and
Supporting People Lead Officers from the
Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty.
The LCP prioritises homelessness
prevention. It is committed to the
provision of schemes that prevent
homelessness by reducing the risk of
tenancy failure or mortgage default;
and by equipping people from diverse
vulnerable groups with the skills they
need to sustain independent living in
their own homes, across all housing
tenures.
The Minister re-iterated the need for evidence
that housing-related support planning and
commissioning are focused on homelessness
prevention as well as the wider policy agenda
and where there are opportunities for savings
and service reconfiguration that these increase
the availability of preventative support.
This indicates a move away from funding
statutory services, i.e. adult social care to more
homeless prevention. In light of other budget
reductions this will have a major impact on
services. It is therefore essential that good
quality commissioning and procurement be
central in meeting the needs of service users
and providing the best value for public money.
The Housing (Wales) Act 2014 includes
significant reforms to homelessness legislation;
places a stronger duty on local authorities to
prevent homelessness; allows local authorities
to use suitable accommodation in the private
sector to discharge homelessness duties; and
requires local authorities to ensure that both
suitable accommodation and satisfactory
support are available for people who are or may
become homeless.
The Act makes particular reference to the need
for local authorities to ensure that suitable
provision is made for certain vulnerable groups
with regard to homelessness. These groups
include:




People leaving prison or youth detention
accommodation
Young people leaving care
People leaving the regular armed forces
of the Crown
People leaving hospital after treatment
for mental disorder as an inpatient
13
Strategy/
Plan/
Framework
Section

Links to Supporting People
People receiving mental health services
in the community.
In addition to homelessness reforms, the Act
places a duty on local authorities to provide
sites for Gypsies and Travellers where a need
has been identified.
The Violence
Against
Women,
Domestic
Abuse and
Sexual
Violence
(Wales) Act
2015
The Violence Against Women, Domestic Abuse
and Sexual Violence (Wales) Bill received
Royal Assent and became an Act on 29 April
2015.The Act aims to improve the Public Sector
response in Wales to such abuse and violence
by:




Improving arrangements to promote
awareness of, and prevent, genderbased violence, domestic abuse and
sexual violence; and to protect and
support victims.
Introducing a needs–based approach to
developing strategies which will
strengthen strategic direction and
accountability
Ensuring strategic level ownership by
appointing a Ministerial Adviser to advise
Welsh Ministers and improve joint
working amongst agencies across the
sector.
Improving consistency, quality and joinup of service provision in Wales.
The LCP supports the aims of The
Violence Against Women, Domestic
Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales)
Act 2015 by continuing to support the
provision of housing-related support
services to domestic abuse survivors
and by promoting and encouraging
partnership working to enable
effective, joined-up service provision to
this client group.
14
Strategy/
Plan/
Framework
The Social
Services and
Wellbeing
(Wales) Act
2014
Section
Links to Supporting People
The Social Services and Wellbeing (Wales) Act
received Royal Assent on 1st May 2014 and
will be implemented in April 2016. The Welsh
Government is drafting the Regulations,
guidance and Code of Practice for the new Act
prior to its implementation.
The new Act repeals most of the existing
Community Care legislation; however, this
legislation will remain in place in Wales until the
new Act is implemented.
The LCP will support the requirements
of the Social Services and Wellbeing
(Wales) Act 2014 by enabling the
provision of preventive housing-related
support services. These services will
complement and work alongside
health and social care services to
strengthen the preventive agenda and
help to reduce dependence on
statutory care services. The LCP will
promote and support partnership
working and will include joint tendering
and contracting arrangements where
these will support effective service
delivery to vulnerable client groups.
The fundamental principles of the Act are:
•
People: putting an individual and their
needs, at the centre of their care, and giving
them a voice in, and control over reaching the
outcomes that help them achieve well-being.
•
Well-being: supporting people to achieve
their own well-being and measuring the
success of care and support.
•
Earlier intervention: increasing
preventative services within the community to
minimise the escalation of critical need.
•
Collaboration: strong partnership
working between all agencies and
organisations.
The Act includes a requirement for services
such as housing, health and social care to work
effectively in partnership to deliver
comprehensive and joined-up care and support.
To avoid confusion, overlap or duplication of
services in this context, the Act clarifies the
distinction in law between housing and social
care duties and services, and affirms that a
local authority cannot discharge a social care
duty by delivering services that are required
under housing provisions.
15
Strategy/
Plan/
Framework
Welfare
Reform
Section
Links to Supporting People
The UK Welfare Reform Act 2012 received
Royal Assent on 8th March 2012. The Act
makes radical changes to the benefits system
in the UK, which are expected to be completed
by 2017.
Further changes are proposed in the Welfare
Reform and Work Bill 2015-16 with additional
measures announced in the Budget on 8th July
2015
The Welfare Reform legislation increases and
tightens limitations and restrictions around
welfare benefits and social housing. These
include changes specifically affecting welfare
provision for social housing tenants, people
with disabilities, young people, and families with
children.
These changes have significant implications for
people who are in receipt of state benefits or on
low incomes.
The LCP supports the provision of
services that will enable people to
engage with education, training and
employment; to maximise their income
and manage their money; and to
achieve and sustain financial
independence.
The LCP supports partnership working
with housing providers to address the
challenges arising from welfare
reforms affecting access to housing for
vulnerable and disadvantaged people.
Supporting People funds housing related
support to a range of vulnerable people
including people with physical or learning
disabilities; people with mental health needs;
young people; and families with children.
Through the Outcomes Framework, Supporting
People encourages and enables people to
engage with training and employment and
increase their financial independence; however,
at the point of engaging with SP services, many
clients will be reliant on benefits to some
extent, in particular Housing Benefit. The
impact of Welfare Reforms upon SP clients and
services are therefore likely to be significant.
Some exceptions to the reforms have been
made for supported accommodation schemes
and for ‘vulnerable’ claimants, but the reforms
are likely to affect both the availability of moveon accommodation, and the ability of some
client groups, particularly young people, to
access independent housing when they are
ready to move on from supported schemes.
16
Strategy/
Plan/
Framework
The Ageing
Well in
Wales
Programme
2014-19
Section
Links to Supporting People
Ageing Well in Wales was launched in October
2014 and is a 5 year partnership of national and
local government with major public and third
sector agencies in Wales. The Programme
contributes to, and complements the Welsh
Government’s Strategy for Older People
(Phase 3) 2013-23.
The LCP contributes to the key
themes of the Ageing Well in Wales
Programme by supporting the
provision of housing-related support
services for older people that sustain
and enhance independent living; and
that promote positive engagement with
the wider community and with
learning, volunteering and
employment.
Ageing Well in Wales includes 5 priority
themes:
 Age Friendly Communities
 Falls Prevention
 Dementia Supportive Communities
 Opportunities for Learning and
Employment
 Loneliness and Isolation
17
3 Current Funding by Client Group
There are over 40 schemes in Wrexham which are funded or partially funded through Supporting
People which supported over 3200 people in 2014/15. The following charts show the percentage of
funding and numbers of scheme places available in Wrexham County Borough for each of the Welsh
Government Supporting People client support categories.
18
4 Service Development - Progress since 2015/16 Local Commissioning
Plan
2015/16 saw the Supporting People Programme Grant in Wrexham cut by 10.37% and the corporate
contribution to Supporting People services cut by 75%; as a result we have reduced our contracted
spend in excess of £400k and work is ongoing to look to further reduce our commitments for 2016/17
and beyond in preparation for further reductions in Supporting People Programme Grant and Local
Authority contribution to the Programme in Wrexham Despite these significant funding cuts,
Supporting People in Wrexham have achieved the following:

We have been able to negotiate additional units of support by working with providers to identify
efficiencies and increase capacity. Whilst every effort is made to mitigate any potential
negative impact, as the budget continues to reduce, this is becoming increasingly difficult and
Service Providers report that there will come a point where this will become unsustainable
particularly for third sector organisations that are facing significant cuts from other public
sector funding streams.

Strategic reviews of services have been carried out resulting in the de-commissioning and final
closure of some services where they have been found to be ineligible in parts of their delivery
and where service users can be supported elsewhere. These have been difficult but necessary
pieces of work due to the cuts to the budget; Service Providers have responded professionally
and with the best interests of service users in mind to mitigate the impact on vulnerable
people.

The Supporting People team have been part of the Reshaping Services Group at WCBC. This
group is looking at all third sector spend across the organisation and seeks to impact assess
any planned cuts holistically to mitigate the negative impact on the Third Sector in Wrexham.

We are working closely with the Housing Options team to identify duplication of services and
possible ways in which the teams can have more influence to determine who services are
provided to.

The Supporting People Template Contract for Housing-Related Support Service provision has
been reviewed and updated to enable in term contract negations and variations as a result of
Welsh Government funding reductions and the need to respond efficiently to changes in
Supporting People Programme Grant Levels.

Work is ongoing with WCBC Procurement Department to negotiate extensions and
exemptions to tender where appropriate in line with the SPPG Guidance and in accordance
with WCBC Financial Regulations. This has resulted in the development of new contract terms
and service specifications for services affected to cover any exemption or extension period.

Working closely with regional colleagues we have contributed to the RCC work streams,
attending workshops and the North Wales Contract and Reviewing Officers Group to take
forward regional priorities.

The Referral Gateway Officer was appointed in October 2015. The Gateway is designed to
ensure the co-ordination of Housing-Related Support services for people who are homeless, at
risk of becoming homeless, or who have community safety housing support needs across the
whole of Wrexham County Borough. The Gateway will ensure that those presenting to the
service are signposted to the most relevant service and avoid the duplication of support for
individuals across different agencies. It will ensure that those with complex needs are
supported in a way that enables them to maximise their independence and access
19
opportunities relevant to their needs. The service will be managed by a Gateway Co-ordinator
who will sit within the Housing Options team.

Continued remodelling of Learning Disability Services has taken place. There remains
growing evidence that people with mild to moderate learning disability who are accessing
generic support services are unable to sustain their tenancies or places on schemes. Welfare
Reform, the introduction of Personal Independence Payments and Universal Credit, have
added to a growing need for support in this area with service users and providers reporting
that people are often struggling to understand new processes. Working with colleagues from
ASC we have been able to progress the work required to continue in our three year plan to
reduce the funding contribution to people with low level learning disabilities and target the
support more appropriately. In addition, external LD contracts which come to an end in 15/16
have been issued notice and a new Learning Disability Supported Accommodation plus
Floating Support Network is currently in development and will be tendered for before the end
of 15/16 in line with WCBC Financial Regulations and the Supporting People Programme
Grant Guidance.

We completed our work to remodel our older persons’ services. Following the review of
and de-commissioning of existing, internally provided older persons’ services in 2014/15, the
Supporting People team completed a successful tender for a two-tier older persons floating
support service. Wrexham Include was launched in April 2015 offering short-term enabling
support and signposting for up to 12 weeks at tier one and longer term, more intensive support
for people with higher level housing-related support needs at tier two.
20
5 Need and Service Gaps
Wrexham County Borough Council Supporting People team gathers needs information from a variety
of sources.
The main source of information is via the Needs Mapping Exercise (NME) which records a person’s
own assessment of their housing-related support and accommodation needs at the time of presenting
to services, whether or not they are able to access them.
It is acknowledged that the information received can be biased according to the organisations which
submit forms for their clients and careful analysis along with supplementary information is needed to
inform decision-making. In addition to NME evidence, WCBC’s SP team looks at evidence supplied
by schemes via their Performance Monitoring and Outcomes returns which show demand (referrals),
unmet need (waiting lists) and equality monitoring data.
The Council’s homelessness statistics provide information about need and we also note anecdotal
evidence from providers and stakeholders. In June we held a very successful consultation event
(see section on Consultation Evidence) where opinion was sought from service users and
stakeholders about their perceptions of service gaps and areas for prioritisation.
Performance Monitoring Data 2014/15
WCBC’s Supporting People team gather Performance Monitoring (PMR) data from service providers
at the end of each quarter as part of a programme of contract monitoring activity. By considering
PMR data and comparing to supply it is clear that demand for services far outstrips the supply with
waiting lists for services for all client groups.
Needs Mapping Exercise (NME) Data
Work led by Denbighshire Supporting People team resulted in the development of a concise NME
form which is being used across all six North Wales Local Authorities and a web-based system which
collates the information centrally.
During the last full financial year, April 2014 to March 2015, 913 forms were received for Wrexham
County Borough. A wide range of provider organisations and other stakeholders participated in the
Needs Mapping Exercise and their submissions represented a variety of client groups, as well as
generic support providers, a Black, Minority Ethnic Group organisation and housing provider
organisations.
One third of people completing a form were not of a fixed abode. Half of those of no fixed abode
were accommodated in a night shelter or hostel. 32 people were sleeping rough. The remaining two
thirds of people completing a form were of a fixed abode, with half of these living in Council
accommodation.
21
Just over 30% of people considered themselves homeless at the time of completing their form and
12% at risk of homelessness within the next 2 months. 9% of people said that they had nowhere to
stay that night. The most frequent reason given for homelessness/risk of homelessness was family
or relationship breakdown.
Accommodation and Support Needs
85% of people completed forms in relation to accommodation and/or support needs. Just under 15%
were completing a form in relation to their accommodation needs only.
594 people of the 913 who completed forms stated that they would like ordinary accommodation and
509 stated that they would like supported accommodation/floating support (support delivered to
people in their own home).
For those seeking the ordinary accommodation options, Council accommodation was the most
popular, followed by Housing Association and home ownership. For the support options the most
favoured was self-contained supported housing, followed by floating support and shared supported
housing.
The NME form lists a number of client support categories based on the Welsh Government’s client
groups for Supporting People services. People completing the form are asked to choose which of the
options are relevant to them and are also asked to pick which option is most important or “Lead
Need”.
22
As can be seen from the chart above, the support needs identified as most important to people were:
vulnerable older person, mental health, and vulnerable young person.
When asked to identify all of their relevant support needs, the most frequent support needs were also
vulnerable older person, mental health and vulnerable young person. Mental health was the most
common with 38.9% of respondents indicating that they had support needs in this area, followed by
vulnerable older person (21.9%) and vulnerable young person (21%).
Client Support Need Category
Vulnerable older person
Mental health
Vulnerable young person
Domestic Abuse
Learning disabilities
Generic
Drug issues
Offending
Alcohol issues
Physical/sensory disabilities
Chronic illnesses
Refugees
Unspecified
Number of forms completed
Lead Support
Relevant Support
Need
Needs
Number %
Number %
156
17.1%
200
21.9%
110
12.0%
355
38.9%
102
11.2%
192
21.0%
78
8.5%
161
17.6%
61
6.7%
145
15.9%
59
6.5%
100
11.0%
58
6.4%
176
19.3%
52
5.7%
141
15.4%
45
4.9%
156
17.1%
34
3.7%
98
10.7%
20
2.2%
60
6.6%
4
0.4%
12
1.3%
134
14.7%
0
0.0%
913
Outcomes Return Data
Supporting People providers are required to submit an outcomes return for each client at the start of
support, every 6 months and/or when a person exits a Supporting People service. At the start of
support, the person in receipt of the Supporting People service is asked which client support
categories are relevant to their support needs. The person is also asked which of those areas are
considered as main/lead need, secondary and third need. The following chart and table below show
client support categories relevant to people at the start of their support for outcomes returns
completed from April 2014 to March 2015.
23
Client Support Category
Single people with support needs
not listed above (25-54)
Young people with support needs
(16-24)
Women experiencing domestic
abuse
Generic/Floating Support/Peripatetic
People with mental health issues
Alarm Services
People over 55 with support needs
Single parent families with support
needs
People with alcohol issues
People with substance misuse
issues
People with criminal offending
history
People with physical and/or sensory
disabilities
People with learning disabilities
Families with support needs
Men experiencing domestic abuse
People with developmental
disorders
People with chronic illnesses
People with refugee status
Young people who are care leavers
Number of starting data records
Lead Support
Need
Number %
2nd or 3rd
Support Need
Number %
Support Need
Relevant
Number %
114 16.17%
18
2.55%
152 21.56%
107 15.18%
41
5.82%
163 23.12%
84 11.91%
14
1.99%
110 15.60%
80 11.35%
75 10.64%
73 10.35%
44 6.24%
85 12.06%
99 14.04%
9 1.28%
17 2.41%
187 26.52%
214 30.35%
91 12.91%
62 8.79%
21
2.98%
25
3.55%
55
19
2.70%
41
5.82%
92 13.05%
17
2.41%
78 11.06%
127 18.01%
15
2.13%
38
5.39%
90 12.77%
15
2.13%
44
6.24%
67
9.50%
14
9
8
1.99%
1.28%
1.13%
29
24
6
4.11%
3.40%
0.85%
59
22
13
8.37%
3.12%
1.84%
3
0.43%
5
0.71%
14
1.99%
3
2
2
0.43%
0.28%
0.28%
9
3
5
1.28%
0.43%
0.71%
15
4
16
2.13%
0.57%
2.27%
7.80%
705
The chart shows that the most frequently occurring lead client support categories at the start of
support were: single people 25-54 (with support needs not listed in other categories), young people
16-24 with support needs, and women experiencing domestic abuse. When all relevant needs are
considered the most prevalent was mental health with almost a third of people stating that this was
relevant to their support needs, followed by generic/floating support and young people with support
needs.
Consultation Evidence
Consultation with Service Users
Methods used to engage and consult with service users include:
•
•
•
•
At an individual level, Reviewing and Contracts Officers consult with service users about
their experiences of the support provided to them as part of the reviewing process through
interviews and questionnaires.
Service user satisfaction forms are used during scheme reviews and when people leave
the service.
Consultation with service users during the development phase of new projects and
remodelling of existing schemes.
Attendance at as many scheme consultation events as possible provides an additional
opportunity to speak to service users about their support.
24
•
•
•
•
Reviewing processes may include an opportunity for SP officers to shadow project staff
and as a consequence have the opportunity to talk to service users and potential service
users.
Attendance at Programme Groups which include service user representation.
LCP Consultation events
On-line survey
Consultation with Provider Organisations and Stakeholders
All Supporting People providers in Wrexham are invited to a bi-monthly Provider Reference Group.
The Terms of Reference for this group were reviewed by group members in 2014 and the Association
of Voluntary Organisations in Wrexham (AVOW) now provide an independent Chairperson. The
Chair of this group also sits on the Wrexham Supporting People Planning Group. This has enabled
providers to raise items needing discussion including service delivery improvement suggestions and
commissioning plans and other SP programme issues.
Supporting People officers regularly meet with provider managers and staff during the reviewing and
monitoring process, remodelling of existing schemes or when planning the development of new
projects to help inform plans for future service improvements and development.
Consultation Event
A consultation event held in June 2015 provided an opportunity for service users, providers, and
other stakeholders to provide feedback on a number of aspects of how the Supporting People
Programme operates in Wrexham and how it might look in future. In addition to the event service
users, providers and other stakeholders were given the opportunity to respond after the event via
either a paper or online questionnaire.
A wide range of provider organisations and other stakeholders participated representing a variety of
client groups, including people experiencing domestic abuse, people with learning disabilities, mental
health issues, substance misuse issues, criminal offending history, older people, families, as well as
generic support providers, and housing provider organisations. A total of 119 responses to the
questionnaire were received, 53 from people who were receiving or had received a Supporting
People Service and 66 from service providers and other stakeholders.
Funding Priorities
Respondents were asked:
The amount of funding that we receive from Welsh Government is reducing over the next few years.
We need to ensure that we manage our remaining funding to ensure that the most vulnerable are
protected and that services are focussed on preventing homelessness. Which areas should we be
making a priority for Supporting People funding?
Funding Priority Areas*
People with mental health issues
People with learning disabilities
Families
Women experiencing domestic abuse
People with physical and/or sensory disabilities
People with alcohol issues
People with drug issues
Young people
Single parent families
People with criminal offending history
Young people who are Care Leavers
Number*
73
46
45
44
43
41
41
40
37
35
33
as a % of
respondents
61.3%
38.7%
37.8%
37.0%
36.1%
34.5%
34.5%
33.6%
31.1%
29.4%
27.7%
25
People over 55 years of age
People with Developmental Disorders (e.g. Autism)
Men experiencing domestic abuse
People with chronic illnesses (including HIV, AIDS)
People with refugee status
Other area - Homelessness
Alarm services
Other area - People aged 25-55
Other area - Young Carers
Other area - People with gambling issues
Other area - Widows
Other area - People who are struggling to make ends
meet
Other - Some of the most vulnerable people I support do
not fit into boxes for other services. Tenancy support type
services need to be flexible about who they support
30
29
27
19
12
8
7
1
1
1
1
1
25.2%
24.4%
22.7%
16.0%
10.1%
6.7%
5.9%
0.8%
0.8%
0.8%
0.8%
0.8%
1
0.8%
* Respondents were able to choose more than one priority area
Savings Ideas
A number of options were presented which were derived from suggestions put forward at our
consultation event and by respondents to WCBC’s Difficult Decisions budget consultation in
September/October 2014.
All respondents (providers, stakeholders and people in receipt of a Supporting People service) were
asked to select any of the options that they agreed with.
Savings Ideas
Pool some services together
More short term intense support to be able to see more
people
Work to increase the speed that people are moved on
into tenancies
Work closely with private and volunteer services
Review where support is available from elsewhere and
avoid duplication
Look at joint funding through the Health Board etc.
Ensure that services spend more on delivering support
and less on management
Increase the number of services tendered out
Increase the focus on homelessness prevention
* Respondents were able to choose more than one idea
as a % of
Number* respondents
25
21.01%
44
36.97%
30
20
25.21%
16.81%
34
28
28.57%
23.53%
40
7
42
33.61%
5.88%
35.29%
Other Themes from the LCP Consultation
In addition to the ‘savings ideas’ identified above, respondents were given the opportunity to make
any other suggestions. Regular themes raised by respondents to the consultation were:





Re-modelling/increasing funding for mental health services and substance misuse services
Work on increasing the range of provision for homeless
Improving communication and partnership working including regional/sub-regional working
Consider group support
A single point of contact for referrals is needed
26
Providers and stakeholders were asked what Supporting People should be thinking about so that the
right services can be delivered, what are the gaps. They were also asked what barriers they have
faced in supporting people to achieve positive outcomes and their thoughts on local and national
factors that could affect the need for housing related support.
People who were receiving or who had received a Supporting People service were asked how they
thought their support service could be improved.
The main themes emerging from the replies to these questions are as follows:
 The effects of funding cuts for example reduction in staff numbers affecting quality of service,
de-commissioning of services where there is increased demand for housing-related support.
 New prison opening in Wrexham and its effect on the demand for housing, housing-related
support services and other services.
 Lack of affordable housing, one bed/smaller accommodation, lack of move-on options for
people leaving supported accommodation.
 Specialist mental health services – shortage of, difficulty in accessing.
 Changes to homelessness legislation.
 Gaps in the range of homelessness services.
 The effects of welfare reform, benefits changes, job losses, low incomes, increased poverty in
Wrexham, concerns about lack or loss of advice services, and shortfall in training in this area.
 The need for more multi-agency working and co-operation.
 The administrative burden to SP funding, too much staff time taken up with paperwork and
recording rather than service delivery both from Supporting People and organisations.
 More long term support, support to be available after move-on and in private accommodation.
Homelessness
Homelessness Statistics
Homeless statistics supplied to the Welsh Government for 2014/15 show that out of a total of 435
decisions taken, 190 households were accepted as being eligible, unintentionally homeless and in
priority need. For those accepted as homeless (190), the reasons for the loss of their home were:-
Reasons for loss of home
Parent no longer willing or able to accommodate
Relatives/friends no longer willing/able to accommodate
Relationship breakdown (partner) - non-violent
Relationship breakdown (partner) - violent
Violence and harassment
Mortgage arrears (including repossession)
Loss of rented or tied accommodation
Current property unsuitable
In institution or care (hospital, prison etc.)
Unknown/data not available/not published
2014/15
25
10
10
35
5
5
45
0
45
10
Change
since
2013/14
+5
+5
-5
+5
No change
No change
+10
-10
No change
+10
WCBC’s Housing Options/Homelessness service enquiry numbers remain fairly constant. However,
the new homelessness provisions in the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 which came into effect on 27 April
2015 include new duties on Local Authorities to help all eligible applicants to keep or find a home. As
a result, the number of new assessments carried out by the Housing Options team has doubled with
almost as many assessments completed in the first 6 months of 2015/16 as in the whole of 2014/15.
27
Number of enquiries
Number of new assessments
2013/14
1687
-
January to June
2014/15
2015/16
1825
866
413
405
Rent Arrears and Evictions
Data supplied to Welsh Government on rent arrears and Social Landlord stock and rents shows that,
at the end of 2013/14, 22.67% of social rented tenancies in Wrexham County Borough were in rent
arrears, 4.22% were in 13 weeks or more of arrears. The trend of the last few years has been a
steady increase in the number of tenancies in rent arrears.
During the financial year 2014/15, 80 households were evicted or abandoned their tenancies with
WCBC. 47 of these were evictions due to rent arrears and 9 were evictions due to anti-social
behaviour.
Given that the full impact of Welfare Reform, the introduction of universal credit and reduction in
housing benefit payments is yet to be fully realised, we could see further increases in the number of
people in rent arrears and at risk of eviction which is likely to impact on the demand for housingrelated support services.
Homelessness and Rough Sleeping
There is continued demand for Wrexham’s Ty Nos night shelter managed by Clwyd Alyn Housing
Association. The night shelter provides emergency accommodation for 16 people (12 male, 4 female)
who may find themselves homeless and are in need of emergency accommodation. In 2014/15 an
average 14.6 people per night were accommodated with an average of 1 person per night being
turned away due to lack of a bed space.
St John’s Project is a homeless hostel provided by The Wallich, providing 18 units of supported
accommodation to homeless people across two sites in the town centre. 11 of the units are direct
access and are over subscribed; an average of 11 people per night were accommodated in the 11
direct access units in 2014/15 with an additional 92 enquires from people seeking accommodation
during the same period. Information from The Wallich shows that there is an average of 15 people
waiting for direct access units at the Project at any one time.
As part of the Wrexham Young Persons’ Project, CAIS (Drug and Alcohol Agency) provides the Soup
Dragon and Outreach Van with other voluntary and charitable organisations continuing to provide
food and other services for street homeless and roofless people in Wrexham. The Soup Dragon has
seen an increase of 14% in the number of clients accessing the service and the Outreach Van has
seen an increase of 34% since the previous year. At total of 2108 clients accessed the Soup Dragon
project in 2014/15 and 53 accessed the Outreach Van.
Ty Croeso is a purpose-built, Tier Two centre (open access drug and alcohol treatment services
which provide accessible drug and alcohol specialist services for a wide range of drug and alcohol
misusers) which opened in 2013 to provide support and treatment for adults with issues in their lives
including substance misuse and homelessness. A range of services are provided at a central
location including breakfast clubs, drop-in services, advice, needle and syringe exchange, information
and support groups work, and structured treatment from nurses and health professionals. 776
individuals used the drop-in service in 2014/15 across 14,300 visits and as part of the drop-in service
to homeless clients, 100 homeless packs were provided.
The experience of staff at Ty Croeso is that changes to the benefits system and the use of sanctions
appear to have driven the increase in homelessness. Whilst the centre is primarily resourced to
support clients with substance misuse issues the staff are finding more and more individuals in crisis
seeking assistance with their benefits and housing.
28
One third of people completing a Needs Mapping form were not of a fixed abode. Half of those of no
fixed abode were accommodated in a night shelter or hostel. Numbers of people stating that they
were sleeping rough or that they had nowhere to stay have increased since 2013/14.
Number Sleeping Rough
Number with nowhere to stay
2013/14
28
43
2014/15
34
82
Responses to our consultation indicate gaps in the range of services for homeless people including
more homeless accommodation for those over 25, the need for more night shelter spaces/a purpose
built night shelter and a homelessness resettlement service.
Older People
One quarter of people consulted at our event and through our online questionnaire thought that this
should be a funding priority area in order to protect the most vulnerable and prevent homelessness.
Vulnerable Older Person was the most frequently occurring lead support need for those who
completing Needs Mapping forms. However, this may be in part due to the organisations which
completed forms. Also, Needs Mapping data relates to 2014/15 and since then our new Older
Persons Floating Support service has commenced.
Mental Health
Needs Mapping data for 2014/15 shows that 12% of people presenting to services classed Mental
Health as their main support need and almost 40% of respondents classed Mental Health as a
support need.
Outcomes Data provided at the start of receiving a Supporting People service shows that almost
three quarters of people with Mental Health as their lead support need were being supported by
services which are not Mental Health specific.
Almost two thirds of those who responded to our consultation questionnaire considered this to be a
funding priority area in order to ensure that the most vulnerable are protected and that services are
focused on preventing homelessness.
When providers and stakeholders were asked what Supporting People should be thinking about so
that the right services can be delivered, they indicated that there are gaps in Mental Health provision
with specific comments as follows:





Specialist mental health support. Short term, intensive support.
Gaps in support for first time tenants and people leaving mental health services to get a sole
tenancy.
Early intervention is key, particularly as many individuals who have listed needs often have
mental health somewhere in the mix. If we are not getting to individuals early enough and
providing the right kind of intervention at an early stage where they may just need a little input
as their needs are quite low, without any input those needs will soon grow and they will find
themselves needing a big package of care to support them.
Gaps in support for Families and Young People who require extra time/support due to their
mental health/wellbeing.
I can only speak from a mental health perspective and there are gaps across all age ranges.
These can be identified and prioritised.
Difficulty in accessing specialist mental health services was also seen as a barrier in supporting
people to achieve positive outcomes. Mental health also featured strongly in provider and
29
stakeholder comments on national and local developments which could affect the need for housingrelated support.






Lack of Mental Health treatment services/assessment services.
Not enough support with Mental Health available.
There are lots of issues with Mental Health, alcohol and drug issues in this area.
Lack of mental health/behavioural resources.
Cut backs in mental health services.
Prison opening is going to put a big strain on all services but in particular mental health
services as some statistics show that over 60% of prisoners have some kind of mental health
issue.
Vulnerable Young People
Almost one third of people consulted considered ‘young people who are care leavers’ a priority area
for funding and just over one third considered young people a priority funding area.
11% of people presenting to SP services stated ‘vulnerable young person’ as their lead support need.
21% of people identified support needs at some level in this area.
Comments from consultation
 There is simply increased demand on all services for housing-related support. This is
complicated by the increasing complex needs of young people in transition, who need a
different/approach model to help them move on from young people’s to adult services.
 Closure of service supporting families of young carers.
During 2013/14 Supporting People worked with colleagues in Housing Options and Children & Young
People Service and with an existing supported accommodation provider to identify a bed space for
short-term emergency accommodation. There is continued demand for this service with a total of 11
young people accessing this provision in 2014/15. A total of 170 people accessed our other 50 units
of supported accommodation for young people in 2014/15. There were over 380 referrals to these
projects in 2014/15.
Domestic Abuse
According to our Needs Mapping data, domestic abuse was the fourth most common lead support
need for people presenting to services and the fifth most common overall support need. Over one
third of service users, stakeholders and providers consulted stated that they considered this a funding
priority area for Supporting People.
Further details on our priorities in this area can be found in the Priorities and Proposals for Service
Development section of this document.
Learning Disabilities
Over one third of respondents to our consultation considered this as one of the priority areas for
funding. From our Needs Mapping data, around 7% of people presenting to Supporting People
services considered Learning Disabilities as their lead support need and 16% identified some level of
support needs around Learning Disabilities.
Work on reviewing and remodelling existing learning disability services is ongoing. Further details on
our priorities in this area can be found in the Priorities and Proposals for Service Development
section of this document.
30
Criminal Offending
The effect of the new prison opening on the need for housing-related support and other services was
a common issue in our consultation responses.
Almost one third of our consultation respondents considered ‘people with criminal offending history’
as a priority for Supporting People funding.
From our Needs Mapping Data over 15% of people presenting to services had support needs around
criminal offending.
Substance Misuse
Our Needs Mapping data for 2014/15 shows that almost 20% of those presenting to services had
support needs at some level around drug issues. Just over 17% stated that they had support needs
around alcohol issues.
Over one third of service users, providers and other stakeholders responding to our consultation
considered drug/alcohol issues a priority for Supporting People funding.
Move-on Accommodation
PMR data from service providers and consultation with service users and providers alike strongly
indicates that moving on from supported accommodation is still an issue in Wrexham.
Service providers are asked each quarter for numbers of service users who are ready to move on but
were unable due to no suitable accommodation available for them to move in to. Our data shows an
average of 30.75 ‘blocked beds’ each quarter.
Period
Quarter 1 2014/15
Quarter 2 2014/15
Quarter 3 2014/15
Quarter 4 2014/15
Number unable
to move-on
26
21
41
35
The experience of our service providers is that there is an extreme shortage of single person
accommodation in particular.
Responses to a survey carried out as part of WCBC’s Local Housing Market Assessment indicate
that recent changes in the economy and welfare reform have had an effect on the demand for smaller
properties. Those looking to rent are taking the “Bedroom Tax” into consideration and are looking to
secure smaller properties. Fewer young people entering the housing market are able to obtain a
deposit to purchase a property of their own and are looking to rented accommodation instead which
has also increased demand for smaller private rented properties.
Conclusion
Whilst a decreasing budget makes it difficult to address all the gaps and suggested priorities, the
following section takes into account the consultation responses in the context of the strategic
priorities outlined at section two and the identified needs and gaps outlined in this section so that we
make best use of limited resources over the next three years.
31
6 Priorities and Proposals for Service Planning
Public services in Wales are under increasing pressure to do more with less in the current economic
climate.
The Local Authority is facing severe financial challenges over the next few years, as the UK
Government is looking to all councils across the country to achieve savings and provide services with
less funding. Wrexham County Borough Council needs to reduce their annual budget by at least £45
million over the next three years. This will inevitably impact on the Supporting People Programme.
Although ‘ring fenced’, the Supporting People Programme in Wales has been and will continue to be
cut significantly as part of the UK Government’s austerity measures. 2015/16 saw the Supporting
People Programme Grant in Wrexham cut by 10.37% and the corporate contribution to Supporting
People services cut by 75%. Welsh Government are likely to see a further cut to their funding from
Westminster in 2016 and have suggested that Local Authorities need to prepare for further significant
cuts; in addition, WCBC corporate contribution will be ceasing. As a result, WCBC have to prepare to
make further, significant cuts to its Supporting People Programme.
It remains WCBC’s view that services to the most vulnerable in our community must be safeguarded
as far as possible; however, in order to do this and sustain services for the future, we have to make
some tough decisions given the significant financial challenges faced.
We have developed approaches which set out a clear picture of how we will work with service
providers to be able to achieve the reductions required to balance the funding. It remains our position
that we are committed to implementing cuts in a way which minimises as far as possible any negative
impact on vulnerable people needing support. Any decision to de-commission, remodel or impose a
reduction in funding will be predominantly based upon the following:





Findings from reviews of existing services
Evaluation of alternative options to decommissioning, to better meet the needs of service
users whilst achieving required savings, including:
- reconfiguring existing services
- regional working and contracting
- working collaboratively to maximise other funding sources
Equality impact assessment of all decommissioning proposals, making use of the WCBC
Reshaping Services Group where appropriate
Risk assessment of any decisions made
Consultation and involvement of stakeholders on how to implement decommissioning plans
effectively
Informed Service Planning
Service Planning over the coming three years will be informed by the following work:




Analysis of quarterly PMR data, 6 monthly Outcomes Reports and needs mapping data
collated regionally.
Regular monitoring meetings at schemes which are used to qualify qualitative analysis and
inform ongoing action planning.
Initial and three yearly contract reviews, following the nationally agreed framework.
Regional and sub-regional collaborative working and information sharing.
In order to mitigate the impact of the continued cut to the SPPG budget in Wrexham, the following
steps will continue to be taken:
32





Looking at average void levels (vacancies) in schemes and cutting contract capacity
accordingly (each service will be considered on its merits)
Informing providers that they should be prepared for further significant funding cuts A review
of currently funded services to evaluate and consider reconfiguration of funding in line with
Supporting People Programme Grant eligibility
Consider contributions and possible funding duplication from other WCBC departments
Seek opportunities to develop regional/sub regional services where appropriate
Decommission services which are no longer assessed as being eligible or a priority
Priorities
In addition to supporting, reviewing and monitoring existing services, the following have been
identified as priorities following consideration of the issues raised throughout this document.
Priorities and updates carried forward from 2015/16
Rough Sleeper Outreach Worker
User Group – Homeless/ Roofless Model of Service Provision – The service will deliver
outreach support to people who present at the Ty Nos Night Shelter or have been identified as
rough sleeping. A worker will assist homeless people to access the services they need to enable
them to research possible solutions to source suitable accommodation, signpost to specialist
agencies and to offer support to attend appointments critical to their health and wellbeing.
Reason – There is evidence that the number of rough sleepers is growing; by offering support at
the point of contact i.e. the night shelter, soup dragon etc., some issues may be addressed at the
earliest point and prevent the situation worsening.
Progress 15/16 – Given the significant cut to the budget, this priority was put on hold during
15/16. Quarterly meetings with the Night Shelter provider still take place to ensure the new SP
contracted service is delivering outcomes for people at risk of rooflessness. In addition, the
Supporting People team regularly attend the Services of Wrexham Action Group meeting which
seeks to find solutions as to how best to support some of the most vulnerable, often roofless
people of Wrexham.
Complex Needs Scheme for Young People
User Group – Young single people and care leavers who can be high risk and who have
complex needs
Model of Service Provision – A 24 hour, 7 days per week supported accommodation scheme
for high needs, high risk young people, comprising a 4 bedroom shared ‘core’ house and 4
satellite flats.
Reason – There are currently 51 units of support for this client group, provided mainly in large
units where service users must possess a certain level of life skill in order to live with others. The
need for supported accommodation for this target group has been discussed and approved in
previous Operational Plans and also with the Young Persons’ Accommodation Needs Group
which consists of members from Strategic Housing Services, Landlord Services, Children and
Young People Leaving Care Team, Youth Justice Team, etc. Following the Southwark
Judgement, there is currently an emphasis on young persons’ supported accommodation needs.
Progress in 2015/16 - This development has been identified in previous Supporting People
commissioning plans; however, with significant budget cuts to the Supporting People programme
over the next few years funding will need to be identified through efficiency savings made
elsewhere to progress this scheme development.
33
What we still need to do
Priorities for Action in 2016 – 2018/19
1. Homelessness

Referral Gateway
Following their appointment in 2015, the newly appointed Referral Gateway Officer will be
expected to develop and deliver a robust plan for implementation of the Supporting People
Referral Gateway, working closely with service providers, service users and stakeholders.
Sitting with the Housing Options team, the Officer will be able to ensure a renewed focus
on homeless prevention which was identified as a need by consultation respondents.

Implementation of Housing Wales Act 2014
The Supporting People team will work with colleagues from the Housing Options service to
implement the Housing Wales Act and Renting Homes Bill. Work will include, but is not
limited to, the introduction of the Referral Gateway for Supporting People services and
working as part of the Housing Strategy service to support the development of a Local
Lettings Agency. In addition, the Supporting People team will seek opportunities to work
with Providers to be able to support tenants placed in the Private Sector as a result of
changes set out in the Housing Wales Act. Furthermore, the team will monitor the impact
of this legislation through their ongoing contract monitoring work with Providers.
2. New service for people with learning disability
2016/17 will see the completion of a three year piece of work with WCBC Adult Social Care
Department to reduce and target SPPG funding more appropriately. The Supporting People
team will continue to monitor, review and support the implementation of these changes with
the Adult Social Care team beyond the initial completion of the changes.
In addition, we will be working with the Provider awarded the Learning Disability Supported
Accommodation and Floating Support Network contract to implement the new service and
ensure a smooth transition for any existing service users. The new service will see two existing
services pooled together into one service delivery contract which was a suggestion for priority
from consultation respondents and will enable a more joined-up approach to service delivery in
this area.
3. New services for people with drug and alcohol issues and/or with criminal offending
behaviours
Evidence collated by Supporting People demonstrates a continued need for support in this
area, with significant numbers of people accessing services with support needs in this area
(see ‘Need, Supply and Service Gaps’). In addition, consultation respondents identified the
need to support people with drug and alcohol issues within the top five areas for spending
priority. The latter part of 2015/16 will see the re-tender for supported accommodation for
people with drug and alcohol issues and/or criminal offending behaviour. Three existing
contracts will be de-commissioned in preparation for the re-tender for the delivery of one
joined-up supported accommodation service to support vulnerable people who have drug
and/or alcohol and/or criminal offending behaviour with housing-related support issues.
Implementation of the scheme is scheduled for April 2016 allowing for a seamless transition
from the existing services which come to an end at the end of March 2016.
In addition there will be a specific tender for a supported accommodation plus floating support
contract for people with criminal offending behaviours during late 2015/16. This service will
34
replace an existing service whilst offering additional units of support to help meet the
anticipated increased need for housing-related support for offenders as Wrexham welcomes
the development of a new prison in the town. The new service will be delivered from April 2016
and will be robustly monitored and reviewed in line with Supporting People Programme Grant
Guidance.
Furthermore, a regional Prison Liaison Officer is to be appointed. The post will work with the
Housing Options team and Support Providers to deliver co-ordinated housing options and
support services for prisoners and ex-offenders with a range of complex and non-complex
housing and support needs in order both to alleviate homelessness and maintain support
thereafter to enable the best chance of housing solutions being maintained. The role will
ensure a comprehensive advice and signposting service to resettlement colleagues in prisons,
preventing homelessness by facilitating access to appropriate permanent accommodation and
making appropriate Supporting People referrals, to enable ex-offenders to sustain and
effectively manage their tenancy. The Supporting People team will work closely with the postholder to ensue effective service delivery and monitoring of outcomes.
4. Strategic input in Service Development
There are a number of key areas where Supporting People can have a strategic input into
service development to improve housing and related services for people across Wrexham.

Older Persons Extra Care housing
WCBC are developing further Extra Care Housing in Wrexham; the Supporting People
team will work as part of the Housing Strategy Department to ensure the new housing
scheme works to complement the aims of Supporting People Programme by enabling
independence and preventing or delaying the need to access social care and health
services.

Armed Forces Veterans
Supported housing for veterans is also an area of service development within the Housing
Strategy section; the Supporting People team will work with colleagues to ensure that the
new service works in partnership with the Supporting People Programme, preventing
homelessness and ensuring long-term, sustainable housing solutions for people in housing
need who have served in the armed forces. This will help the local authority meet its
obligations under the new Housing Wales Act to ensure suitable provision for ‘people
leaving the regular armed forces of the Crown’.

Domestic abuse
The Supporting People Programme funds a number of schemes working with people who
have experienced domestic abuse; there remains evidence of a continued requirement for
such support with high numbers of people accessing Supporting People services with
support needs in this area (see ‘Need, Supply and Service Gaps’). Consultation evidence
also supports continued spend in this area with support for women experiencing domestic
abuse being identified within the top five funding priority areas. The ‘Violence Against
Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales) Act 2015’ aims to improve
‘consistency, quality and join-up of service provision in Wales’. In partnership with other
departments within WCBC, the Supporting People team aim to work toward delivering a
more co-ordinated approach to ensure a more efficient use of decreasing public funds and
ensure the long-term feasibility of such services.
35
5. Investigate how best to meet the needs of people with lower level mental health issues
There is a growing need for provision for people presenting with mental health issues. Our
needs mapping and outcomes data evidences a growing need for support in this area (see
‘Needs, Supply and Service Gaps’). This was further reinforced through the consultation
process; support for people with mental health issues was identified as the number one
funding priority (by a significant number). The Supporting People team aim to work with
partners and stakeholders to identify the nature and scale of the gap in terms of housingrelated support and work to develop a plan for tackling the gap in service provision to best
meet the needs of people in this area. This will enable the local authority to meet their
obligations under the new Housing Wales Act to ensure provision for ‘people receiving mental
health services in the community’.
6. Evaluate the barriers and solutions to accessing move-on accommodation
Providers are continually reporting to us that moving people on from supported
accommodation can prove the most difficult aspect of support with an apparent lack of
appropriate move-on accommodation to blame. Consultation evidence supports this with
move-on identified as a priority for addressing service gaps, barriers and ensuring service
savings by enabling move-on at the appropriate time. Statistical evidence backs up this
position (see ‘Need, Supply and Service Gaps’), suggesting a huge problem in terms of
supported accommodation being ‘blocked’ by people who are ready to move on but are unable
to. The Supporting People team aim to work with Service Providers and stakeholders to
investigate the problem further and assess what action is within our control which we can work
collectively to overcome.
36
7 Action Plan Year 1
Outcome contributing to
SP Referral Gateway
New Service for People with
Learning Disability
Implementation of Housing
Wales Act 2014 and the Renting
Homes Bill
New services for people with
drug and alcohol issues and/or
with criminal offending
behaviours
Strategic input in Service
Development
Action
Action Plan for implementation complete.
Consultation with existing Supporting People Providers and
stakeholders complete
Initial pilots launched
Review of implementation of changes to the funding of Adult
Social Care Learning Disability Service
Initial contract review of Learning Disability Supported
Accommodation and Floating Support Network
Contribute to the Housing Options 12 month Action Plan
Initial contract review of the Supported Accommodation/
Floating Support for Substance Users and Offender
Initial contract review of the Supported Accommodation plus
Floating Support Service for Offenders
Options Appraisal for additional day services for rough
sleepers
Explore feasibility of an emergency bed for Housing Options
placements at Wrexham Night Shelter
Advise on the development of an implementation plan for a
new Extra Care Housing Development
Advise on the development of an implementation plan for a
new Supported Housing Scheme for Veterans
Develop an integrated contract for support provision at
Wrexham Refuge and Drop-in services for people
experiencing domestic abuse.
Investigate how best to meet the Complete an evaluation of the gaps in service and an
needs of people with lower level options appraisal for meeting them
mental health issues
Host a workshop with providers and stakeholders to
Evaluate the barriers and
solutions to accessing move-on investigate the scale and scope of barriers to move-on and
share good practice regarding solutions tried
accommodation
Responsible Officer
Gateway Officer
Gateway Officer
By When
March 2017
March 2017
Gateway Officer
Supporting People Officers
March 2017
March 2017
Supporting People Officers
July 2016
Supporting People Officers
July 2016
Supporting People Officers
August 2016
Supporting People Officers
September 2016
Policy and Projects Officer
March 2017
Supporting People Officers
March 2017
Supporting People Officers
July 2016
Supporting People Officers
March 2017
Supporting People Officers
March 2017
Supporting People Officers
March 2017
Supporting People Officers/
Providers
March 2017
37
8 Equality Impact Assessment
An Equality Impact Assessment (EIA) on the content of the of the Wrexham SP LCP 2016-19 was
undertaken in accordance with WCBC EIA Protocols. This will be reviewed periodically throughout
the life of the LCP.
In addition, all service remodelling and de-commissioning decisions taken forward have undergone or
are scheduled to undergo individual EIA in partnership with relevant stakeholders.
The chair of the WCBC Reshaping Services Group has been consulted with the aim of making use of
this protected characteristics forum to table remodelling, commissioning and de-commissioning
proposals where appropriate in order to better inform EIAs and service development work.
9 Funding
Indicative figures for Supporting People Programme Grant (SPPG) for Wrexham for 2016/17 have
not been issued at the time of producing this Plan; however, we are preparing for further significant
cuts during the life of this commissioning plan as a result of Welsh Government funding reductions
from Westminster.
It should be noted therefore that the spend plan will be subject to change once final settlement
figures have been received from Welsh Government.
The following spend plan has been developed using 2015/16 Supporting People Programme Grant
(SPPG) amount. Due to the timing of the outcome of the UK Government’s Spending Review, the
Welsh Government will not be able to publish a draft budget until 8 December with details of the
indicative SPPG amount for Wrexham for 2016/17 to follow.
38
Spend Plan collection period
Local Authority Spend Plan 2016-17
Regional Collaborative Committee:
North Wales
Local Authority:
Wrexham
SPPG Annual Allocation:
£4,980,684.73
Service Type
Fixed Site (Accommodation Based)
Client
Units
Less than
6 Months
Client
Units
Client Spend Category (The category to which
Numbers
£
Numbers
the service is primarily focused)
Women experiencing Domestic Abuse
8 141,063.76
2
Total
Units
Local Authority
24
(exc LA
contribution
Months
cont)
plus
Floating (Community Based)
6 to 24
Months
Client
Units
£
Numbers
24 Months
plus
Client
Units
£
Numbers
Less than
6 Months
Client
Units
£
Numbers
6 to 24
Months
Client
Units
£
Numbers
£
£
Numbers
Total
(exc LA
cont)
Units
funded
solely by
LA
Contrib
£
Numbers
26,827.75
0
0.00
0
0.00
20
74,202.78
0
0.00
12,905.93
30
242,094.29
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0.00
0
0.00
0
97 1,328,211.20
0
0.00
45
96,465.47
0
0.00
140,613.49
152 1,461,125.59
5
25 67,675.91
Men experiencing Domestic Abuse
0
0.00
0
0.00
People with Learning Disabilities
0
0.00
10
36,448.92
0
People with Mental health Issues
0
0.00
16
149,567.62
13
298,611.06
0
0.00
25
114,430.75
33,600.22
79
630,285.34
0
People with Substance Misuse Issues (Alcohol)
0
0.00
2
22,911.44
0
0.00
0
0.00
18
53,198.34
0
0.00
4,057.38
20
76,109.78
0
People with Substance Misuse Issues (Drugs and
Volatile substances)
People with Criminal Offending History
0
0.00
2
22,911.44
0
0.00
0
0.00
18
53,198.34
0
0.00
4,057.38
20
76,109.78
0
0
0.00
14
67,187.13
0
0.00
0
0.00
6
11,076.21
0
0.00
4,172.18
20
78,263.34
0
People with Refugee Status
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0.00
0
0.00
0
People with Physical and/or Sensory Disabilities
0
0.00
0
0.00
21
91,804.09
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
4,894.03
21
91,804.09
0
People with Developmental Disorders (I.e. Autism.)
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0.00
0
0.00
0
People with Chronic Illnesses (including HIV, Aids)
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0.00
0
0.00
0
Young People who are Care Leavers
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0.00
0
0.00
0
11 118,544.18
40
415,337.77
0
0.00
0
0.00
25
56,963.12
0
0.00
31,497.69
76
590,845.07
0
Young People with Support Needs (16-24)
Single parent Families with Support needs
0
0.00
4
43,106.99
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
2,298.01
4
43,106.99
0
Families with Support Needs
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
15
119,287.29
0
0.00
6,359.15
15
119,287.29
0
Single people with Support Needs not listed above
(25-54)
People over 55 years of age with Support needs
(this category must be exclusive of alarm services).
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0.00
0
0.00
0
0
0.00
0
0.00
770
557,677.93
70 110,762.00
50
79,115.71
150 13,329.41
153,943.35
1,040
760,885.05
54
Generic Floating support to prevent homelessness
(tennacny support services which cover a range of
user needs but which must be exclusive of fixed
site support)
Alarm Services (including in sheltered/extra care).
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
205
394,606.66
0
0.00
33,941.48
205
394,606.66
12
0
0.00
0
0.00
101
10,832.86
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
2,130.22
101
10,832.86
40
16 172,427.87
24
232,900.73
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
0
0.00
21,607.88
40
405,328.60
0
175 81,005.32
456,078.39
1,823 4,980,684.73
111
Expenditure which does not directly link to the
spend plan categories above.
TOTALS
35 432,035.81
114 1,017,199.79
1,002 2,287,137.14
70 110,762.00
427 1,052,544.67
39