Provider Selection Regime (PSR) - Award of medical advisers for adoption and fostering panels

Concepts

• wembley
• health services
• fostering panels
• provider selection regime
• medical advisers
• direct award process c. direct award
• adoption
• fostering and adoption panels
• medical advisers for adoption
• medical

Location

United Kingdom:

Description

The Council has a contract titled medical advisers for adoption and fostering panels. The current contract will expire on 30/11/2024. It is provided by Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust (“CLCH”) who deliver the services under contract. Medical Advisers are registered qualified doctors and consultant paediatricians, and the professional and specialist nature of the service means it needs to be outsourced as this expertise is not available within the Council. It is a statutory requirement for local authorities to appoint Medical Advisers for the provision of health advice and guidance to Fostering and Adoption Panels. This is contained within several Acts pertinent to Children’s Services.

Total Quantity or Scope

The Council is intending to award a contract an existing provider following direct award process C. Direct award of the contract for provision of Medical Advisers for Adoption and Fostering Panels (the Contract) following the Provider Selection Regime (PSR) process C for an initial period of twelve (12) months from 1st December 2024 to 31st November 2025, with the option to extend the Contact for an extra six (6) months from 1st December 2025 to 31st May 2026 in total sum of £148,756.00 exclusive of VAT (to cover the 18 months total period) to Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust (CLCH).

Award Detail

Award Criteria

CPV Codes

• 85100000 - Health services

Legal Justification

The procurement falls outside the scope of application of the regulations. The awarding of this contract is subject to the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. For the avoidance of doubt, the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do not apply to this award. The publication of this notice marks the start of the standstill period. Representations by providers must be made to decision makers by 27/11/2024. This contract has not yet formally been awarded; this notice serves as an intention to award under the PSR.

Other Information

** PREVIEW NOTICE, please check Find a Tender for full details. ** Written representations should be sent to procurement@brent.gov.uk Note any declared conflicts or potential conflicts of interest of individuals making the decision and how these were managed - There are no identified conflicts of interest. A report was prepared by the Officer recommending the award and the decision was made and taken by the Director of Early Help and Social Care. Relative importance of the key criteria that the relevant authority used to make a decision - The existing provider was assessed against key criteria which were weighted as below equally and the provider scored satisfactorily against the assessed criteria as set out below. Key criteria for the service: Quality and innovation 30% : - It is a statutory requirement for local authorities to provide Medical Advisers to provide health advice and guidance to Fostering and Adoption Panels. This is contained within several Acts pertinent to Children’s Services. Medical Advisers are registered qualified doctors and consultant paediatricians, and the professional and specialist nature of the service means it needs to be outsourced as this expertise is not available within Brent Council. The Medical Advisor provides health advice and guidance for adoption panels and is responsible for: Commenting on the health assessments of all children with a care plan of adoption and providing written medical advice to the Agency Decision Maker (ADM) (Director Early Help and Social Care) when they are considering a plan of adoption, and again when they are considering the match of a child to the prospective adoptive parents. The Medical Adviser is responsible for reviewing the medical information on the child. They provide consultation and counsel to prospective adopters on the medical information available and any likely implications to prospective adopters. This is prior to an adoption match and considers any Brent child’s current or future health, including how these needs could and should be supported. This is prior to the adoption panel making recommendations. The Medical Advisor also provides health advice and guidance for fostering panels and is responsible for: Commenting on the adult health forms of all foster carers, kinship foster carers, connected person(s) carers, Special Guardianship and private foster carers. Some health assessments are conducted annually, others every two (2) years, depending on need. They attend the fostering panel and advise on medical matters. There are opportunities for innovations in this service by building a comprehensive assessment of a child's health through collaborative approaches with the North West London (NWL) Community and Mental Health Provider Collaboratives. The service can demonstrate it is effective because the planned fostering or adoption progresses - without this report, it can't happen. If the report says that it can't go ahead then the planned fostering or adoption will not proceed. The outcome of the service is the assessment of the child's health, and their health can be monitored over time and a successful planned transition into fostering or adoption through comprehensive health assessments. Value 10% : - The service delivers value for money and the the Council are assured that the service is delivering value in terms of the balance of costs, overall benefits and the financial implications of an arrangement. If the service is not delivered, timescales cannot be met. There are long-term benefits by offering the service as the child benefits from a more long term stable home, otherwise they are in placements which means they are not receiving a feeling of home with a mum and dad and a stable family home setting. Integration, collaboration and service sustainability 20% : - In March/April 2023 NWL ICP led a review of the LAC Health and Medical Advisers specifications through a series of workshops conducted by a consultancy firm PPL who were key partners contributed to this. From this a draft specification was developed for the delivery of Medical Advisors and LAC Health contract. The local authority is working with NWL ICP on possible future joint arrangements to include the provision of Medical Adviser for adoption and fostering panel being part of the NWL LAC Health contract managed by NWL ICB. Improving access, reducing health inequalities and facilitating choice 30% : - It is a statutory requirement for LA’s to ensure Medical Advisers provide health advice and guidance to Fostering and Adoption Panels. This is contained within several Acts pertinent to Children’s Services. Local authorities and ICBs should cooperate to make sure adoption agencies and panels secure access to timely medical advice and comprehensive information about a child’s health to avoid unnecessary delays. Social value 10% : - The outcome of the Contract is designed to benefit those living in Brent. Assessment of the existing provider's current performance against the existing contract taking into account the established key criteria: Quality and innovation: - The provider often meets expectation but needs improvement. The provider was meeting all the KPI targets but due to staff shortage of key medical advisers, some performance targets have dropped over the last year. Health visitor vacancy rates are high across the country and is a national problem. Monthly meetings have been put in place and the provider is working with Brent Officers to make improvements thus far, and gives an update on the mandatory reviews. The service has agreed to begin working to implement the Start for Life programme over the next 2 years. There are opportunities for innovations in this service by building a comprehensive assessment of a child's health through collaborative approaches with the North West London (NWL) Community and Mental Health Provider Collaboratives. Value: - Provider is satisfying the existing contract to a sufficient standard. The provider has established good links with Brent Council’s Children and Young People’s directorate. The provider has developed a good working relationship with managers in social work teams and the services are delivered in the best interest for children and young people. The provider use a medical information system called EMIS Health. This enables the Medical Adviser to access information required to complete a comprehensive and up to date assessment and provide advice accordingly to panel and prospective adopters. There are examples of the provider delivering additional value for the Council in terms of wider outcomes for children and the savings these generate for other services. Integration, collaboration and service sustainability: - Provider is satisfying the existing contract to a sufficient standard. The provider is working with stakeholders across the health system in Brent to improve outcomes for children and families. The provider contributes towards the strategic overview of children's health in the borough by sitting on the Children's trust board, participation in the ICP and executive committee. CLCH use a medical information system called EMIS. This enables the Medical Adviser to access information required to complete a comprehensive and up to date assessment and provide advice accordingly to panel and prospective adopters. The provider is working with stakeholders across the health system in Brent to improve outcomes for children and families. In March/April 2023 NWL ICP led a review of the LAC Health and Medical Advisers specifications through a series of workshops conducted by a consultancy firm PPL CLCH contributed to this. Improving access, reducing health inequalities and facilitating choice: - Provider is satisfying the existing contract to a sufficient standard. The provider has enabled the statutory requirements for LA’s to be fulfiled ensure Medical Advisers provide health advice and guidance to Fostering and Adoption Panels. This is contained within several Acts pertinent to Children’s Services. CLCH use a medical information system called EMIS which enables the Medical Adviser to access information required to complete a comprehensive and up to date assessment and provide advice accordingly to panel and prospective adopters. The provider has worked successfuly with the Local authoriy and ICBs to make sure adoption agencies and panels secure access to timely medical advice and comprehensive information about a child’s health to avoid unnecessary delays. The assessments are shared with the local authority Social Care Teams and uploaded onto case systems. Social value: - The outcome of the Contract is designed to benefit those living in Brent. Rationale for choosing the provider with reference to the key criteria: Quality and innovation: - The provider will be able to satisfy the new contract to a sufficient standard. Value: - The provider will be able to satisfy the new contract to a sufficient standard. Integration, collaboration and service sustainability: - The provider will be able to satisfy the new contract to a sufficient standard. Improving access, reducing health inequalities and facilitating choice: - Provider will be able to satisfy the new contract to a sufficient standard. Social value: - The provider will deliver relevant social value KPIs which have been identified collaboratively with the Council for the benefit of Brent residents contributing to the delivery of the borough plan.