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RESOLVED:
 

1.   
That Cabinet approves the proposal to deliver a
digital post-mortem service in Surrey. 
 

2.   
That Cabinet grants delegated authority to the
Deputy Chief Executive & Executive Director for
Resourcesto approve the transfer of
£1.15m capital pipeline to budget to
successfully deliver a Digital Post-Mortem Service in
Surrey, following endorsement by Capital
Programme Panel and subject to the annual revenue impact, including
borrowing costs, being no more than £90k, as per the current
Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS). 
 

3.   
That Cabinet notes the intention to commission a
third-party provider to deliver a digital post-mortem scanning
service, the costs of which will be met from the service revenue
budget.
 

4.   
That Cabinet agrees to delegate approval of the
necessary steps to deliver this proposal up to +/- 10% of the
budgetary tolerance level, including procurement route to market,
any contract award decision and any other legal documentation
required to facilitate the approvals within this report, to the
Deputy Chief Executive & Executive Director for Resources in
consultation with the Cabinet Member for Fire & Rescue and
Resilience.
Reasons for Decisions:
 
The
current model of post-mortem provision for the Surrey
Coroner’s Service is not sustainable due to increasing costs
and ongoing challenges in providing a high-quality service for the
deceased and bereaved families. There is currently no digital
post-mortem capability in Surrey. This technology is used for only
a small number of deceased (predominately faith and child deaths)
who must be transported out of county.? Other areas with digital
post-mortem capability report that approximately 70-75% of all
post-mortems can be done digitally. Investing in
digital capability and the necessary infrastructure needed
will minimise current risks in service delivery and enable
efficiencies in the longer term through a significant reduction in
invasive post-mortems.
(The
decisions on this item can be called-in by the Communities,
Environment and Highways Select Committee)