Purpose

This report provides an update on the Council’s business continuity response following the collapse of NRS Healthcare nationally, which impacted 42 local authorities across the UK, and makes recommendations on the future commissioning of community equipment services.
 

Decision

DECISION;

1. Noted the business continuity response arrangements currently in place and the need to transition into business-as-usual arrangements with a new provider in the short-term via a direct award under emergency provisions.
2. Agreed the direct award of a contract to Enabled Living Healthcare for the provision of a community equipment service on a 2 + 1 basis.
3. Agreed that the Council continues to purchase equipment stock via Newham’s membership of the Croydon IPH Framework, by entering into a service level agreement for a concurrent 2 + 1 years, pending further work to potentially develop a sub-regional framework with other Northeast London boroughs.

Reasons for the decision

The current in-house business continuity service (supported by additional emergency capacity from Enabled Living Healthcare) is not sustainable in its current form, due to it operating from an unsuitable building, with temporary or seconded staff, short-leased vehicles and rudimentary IT systems.

A sustainable solution is needed for the next few years to provide stability and allow for further work to explore the longer-term plans and options.

A direct award is permissible under emergency provisions, in line with the actions taken by the other affected boroughs in the London Community Equipment Consortium, to quickly implement a service to replace the NRS contract.

Given the current market challenges, a model is recommended where the Council retains control of the key assets required to deliver a community equipment service and commissions the service delivery aspect.

This provides resilience and the ability to respond quickly to any business failure.

Securing premises for Tower Hamlets would reduce the length of contract required and will allow transition to an in-house service if the Council chooses this approach in future as it will already have the premises in place.

Enabled Living Healthcare provides a service well regarded by Newham Council, further informed by our experience of them providing the Council with the emergency service for the last three months. It allows for a sustainable solution that enables collaboration with affected neighbouring North-East London boroughs.

A direct award would be the quickest solution and could be implemented within three to six months of securing the required premises. Enabled Living are already part of our business continuity response and are holding the Council’s data in their systems to keep it secure, so mobilisation would be easier.

Transition arrangements where Enabled Living take over running our business continuity response could be implemented sooner in preparation for the start of the full service.

This approach offers the best opportunity to develop a sub-regional approach to community equipment services provision with our North-East London partners.

A decision about where the service will be delivered from will be considered in a separate paper.

Alternative options

Continue delivering the service in-house - This is not feasible in the short-term but is included for completeness. The Council does not currently have a suitable fitted out site, permanent trained staff, IT systems and business as usual processes, policies and procedures. This would all need to be developed before an in-house could be safely operated. Continuing to operate the in-house service as it is would not deliver the best outcomes for residents.

If this option was to be considered it would require investment to conduct a feasibility study and would take 12-18 months to do so. This is an option that could be further explored and developed, once stability is provided by transferring the service through a direct award to Enabled Living. Under that option the Council would have obtained the key assets (warehouse, fittings, decontamination equipment) to run its own service again in future if it wished to do so.

Go out to tender for a new service  - This option would require market testing, time to develop a full specification, running the tender process and mobilising a new contract and this would take between 12-18 months. The current business continuity response could not be sustained for that period. Given most of the community equipment providers are mobilising services for the local authorities affected by the NRS collapse, and the market is now even more restricted, there is a risk of a lack of bids and that providers could overstretch themselves taking on a new tender or contract award.

Direct award to another provider - Similarly to above, the main providers are all busy mobilising services for sub-regional groups of authorities in London, via direct awards. Enabled Living Healthcare are best placed to do the same for the North-East London boroughs.

Action by:

CORPORATE DIRECTOR FOR RESOURCES (A. KASSIM)