To scrutinise the report of the Portfolio Holder for Corporate Governance and Engagement regarding Welfare Call Monitoring.
Minutes:
· Report of the Portfolio Holder for Corporate Governance and Engagement regarding Welfare Call Monitoring
Issues Discussed:
· Update report as shielding does not end until 16th August 2020.
· Originally the Council made 18,000 calls to individuals. The Council now makes about 5,000 follow up calls every week or fortnight to individuals. Initially 915 requests for food boxes have been sent to Welsh Government, this has now reduced to 326 boxes.
· As part of recovery, consideration is being given to whether the calls can be undertaken by volunteers. Welsh Government is also seeking to transfer the provision of food boxes to local authorities, and the Council is awaiting clarity of the requirement. The monthly cost of resourcing welfare calls etc is about £10k per month, but this is now reducing.
· The Chair commented that this work had been undertaken sympathetically and the public welcomed the calls.
· Questions:
This has shown that Social Services and others do not know what is being delivered locally by 800 other organisations in the county. |
The first call made to individuals was by the Council and advice was taken about connecting with other organisations. This should be continually reviewed, including local organisations and connections as the pandemic is not over as yet. |
Some wastage in the process in relation to food boxes. Need for groups and organisations to link in better together and have an understanding who should be responsible for what element of the service provided. Could people opt out of food parcel service. |
Once a person opts out, the Council advised Welsh Government. However, there may have been a delay in the information being received by the food delivered as well as a delay for the service being stopped. Working on improving local connections would be an useful piece of work for the Council if shielding continues. |
If there another coronavirus spike in the winter, what plans are in place to address the issues raised e.g. collaboration with local groups. |
The Council is awaiting the announcement by Welsh Government of the future plans for shielding. |
There has been a significant increase in the numbers of people who the Council had to contact (initially 500 up to 6000). Did the Council receive sufficient notice of changes to numbers, and are any improvements to communications being fed back to Welsh Government and Health. |
The Council received little notice of changes, with numbers requiring to be called growing within a two week period. The Council increased the number of people undertaking calls with over 100 people being redeployed from other services to assist. If there is a second spike, the Council has robust systems and experienced officers who can undertake calls. |
Will the cost of £10k per month for welfare calls be recovered from Welsh Government. |
It is hoped to recover the majority of this cost from Welsh Government. |
Outcomes:
Action |
Action By / Completion Date |
Plan for future Welfare Calls etc to be brought back to a future meeting of the committee. |
WR / DR |
Supporting documents: