Agenda item

A report on the Adaptations Grants Scheme (AGS) was introduced by the Cabinet Member for Social Care and Health Integration. The scheme involved the provision of grants of money to individuals with social care needs so that they arranged their own adaptations to their home and maintained their independent living.  It had been running for some years, with declining uptake.  The current scheme was widely underutilised with a current budget underspend of £0.378m as at 31 July 2018. 

On the basis of both the control weaknesses identified by Internal Audit and the poor uptake of the scheme, the report outlined a decision undertaken by the Cabinet Member for Social Care and Health Integration to suspend the current Adaptations Grant Scheme with immediate effect.  It was intended to fundamentally review and relaunch the scheme in for 2019/20.

The Cabinet Member for Health and Social Integration added that a report would be submitted to Cabinet in 2019 in respect of a revised Adaptations Grants Scheme which would be consulted on with service users and the scheme was designed for vulnerable people including people with disabilities. She accepted that the Internal Audit reflected various concerns and that some of checks were not as stringent as they could be in terms of the existing scheme that had been suspended. She noted the new personalisation agenda conflicted with the Internal Audit’s view that those on the scheme were told where to shop. Whilst interim solutions to tackle the most prominent issues had been put in place a relaunched service would be able to fully look to accommodate the audit recommendations and focus on improving the take up of the service and promoting the principle of choice and control, upon which the scheme was based.

Members asked how this new scheme differed from the disability facilities grant scheme.  The Operational Director Adults Care and Support stated that the adaptation grants were a direct cash payment to individuals.  There were five applicants in the pipeline at present and at the present time £20K had been spent out of a total of £400K budget.

The Operational Director stated that the Council were totally committed to avoiding fraud and the misuse of Council funds in line with legislation and this legal clause will be e-mailed to Members.

The Independent Adviser (Audit) welcomed the report. However, he considered it helpful in future reports that in such cases that the Internal Audit recommendations were not accepted by the service, an explanation in the report was required and additionally the level of implementation and other actions proposed. He suggested that could include a grid to show individual recommendations and alternatives, action. The Cabinet Member and the Committee concurred with this proposal and agreed an additional recommendation to this item.(q.v)

The Committee:

(i)  Noted the work that has been undertaken already to strengthen controls in the operation of the scheme; and

(ii)  Noted the proposal to now suspend the scheme, review the poor uptake and fundamentally relaunch it for 2019/20.

(iii)  An action plan would be included in a future report to the Committee, at the time the new adaptations grant scheme was launched, together with any other actions proposed in the internal audit report.