Agenda item

Report of the Executive Director Adults and Health.

This report sets out how Adult Social Care works with adults with a learning disability and their families and carers to support them to live as independently as possible in the community through Supported Living.

Camden is committed to supporting people who have care and support needs to stay in or near to Camden where at all possible. People who have a learning disability and their families have told officers that this is especially important to them as it helps people stay connected to family, friends and their local community. Supported living is often the best way to achieve this and it means an adult with a learning disability can live locally in a supported environment whilst having their own tenancy and their own ‘front door’.

Consideration was given to the report of the Executive Director, Adults and Health, which was presented by Andrew Reece, Head of Community Learning Disability Services.

In response to questions from the Chair regarding a project on supported living for people with a learning disability, the Head of Community Learning Disability Services explained that in one project to improve the support offer in Camden, four residents had chosen to move from a dilapidated four-storey townhouse, with single bedrooms that could not be suitably adapted. They had been offered and had accepted one of the Council’s sheltered housing tower blocks, where they each had their own one bedroom flat alongside shared communal spaces. The residents were very happy with their new accommodation. There was a similar second project in the pipeline, and a recent project had also supported people to move from another large unsuitable town house in to newly adapted en-suite rooms in the old Mayford day service.

With regard to monitoring the quality of supported living services, there were quarterly monitoring meetings between Camden Learning Disability Service (CLDS), the learning disability commissioners and providers. Clinical staff and commissioners also conducted unannounced visits at peak times to supported living placements. Work was also underway with commissioning colleagues to build in measures of physical activity that people were enabled to do.

A Member raised a case whereby a placement had caused considerable distress to neighbours over a number of months, with local residents stating that the situation had affected their mental health and finances. While there was now a solution in place, the Member commented that the Council had provided no reassurance to the neighbours and felt that officers had not wished to discuss the problems. It was suggested that the rights of a variety of stakeholders needed to be taken into account rather than just the rights of the particular individual. The solution had been sudden and an understanding of the process to be undertaken to resolve such situations in the future would be welcomed. The Head of Community Learning Disability Services acknowledged that communications could have been better between the various parties. It was not considered that this could have resulted in a shortened timeframe for resolution as there was a shortage of specialist providers.

The Executive Director Adults and Health suggested that the process to resolve such situations would be different in each case but the contact for councillors would be Adult Social Care. It was agreed that the Executive Director Adults and Health, Head of ASC Operations and Deputy DASS, and Head of Community Learning Disability Services would meet with Councillor Anna Burrage to discuss any lessons arising from the case.

ACTION: Executive Director Adults and Health

It was suggested that lessons from cases such as where there are disturbances to neighbours could be developed into cases studies in a similar way those in the Safeguarding Adults Partnership Board annual report.

The Head of Community Learning Disability Services explained that ‘The Big Plan’ was the strategic plan for supporting people with learning disabilities. A ‘competitive dialogue’ approach with bidders for support contracts allowed the competitive tendering process to be informed by the expertise of providers.

It was confirmed that some Camden residents with learning disabilities who had been placed out of borough had been supported to return. However, residents often settle into their placements and do not want to moved back.

RESOLVED –

THAT the report be noted.