The meeting covered the performance of Hounslow Council's Adult Social Care Service, a proposed consultation on changes to Council Tax Support, and an update on how the council intends to deliver on its manifesto pledges.

CQC Local Authority Assessment of Adult Social Care: Outcome

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England. As part of its new regulatory powers, the CQC is assessing all local authorities in England on their performance in delivering adult social care in their area. In a report published in May, Hounslow's adult social care service was judged to be 'Good'.

The report pack provided to the Committee contained the CQC's full report¹. This report highlights many strengths within the adult social care service in Hounslow including the 'robust processes' in place to assess and manage risk and keep people safe. The report notes the importance the council places on keeping people safe and how this was a key priority for officers.

The report also highlighted some areas where the service can be improved. For example, it noted the relatively low uptake of Direct Payments² in Hounslow and recommended that the council take steps to promote them and improve access.

This is the full CQC inspection report: Appendix 2 for CQC Local Authority Assessment of Adult Social Care outcome Direct Payments are payments made to people who have been assessed as needing support, to allow them to purchase their own care rather than receiving a care package directly from their council.

Changes to Hounslow's Local Council Tax Support scheme - Consultation and Engagement

The Committee was asked to consider a proposed consultation on changes to Hounslow's Local Council Tax Support (CTS) scheme.

A report included in the pack for the meeting explained the reasons for the proposed changes. These include the increased number of people moving onto Universal Credit, the increased demand for CTS, and the need to target support at those who need it most. The council also highlighted the financial reasons for changing the existing CTS scheme. In particular, the report notes that the cost of delivering the CTS scheme is forecast to increase by £3m in 2025/26 which would make the existing scheme 'unsustainable in the long term'.

The council is proposing to introduce a new CTS scheme that would 'remove 100% support from working age households'. This new scheme would require all working age households to pay a minimum of 25% of their council tax. The council is also proposing to introduce a support fund to support residents struggling financially with the proposed changes.

The proposed consultation would allow residents and other stakeholders to provide feedback on the changes. The report pack contained a draft of the consultation document.

Delivery Plan Monitoring Q1 2024/25

The report pack for the meeting also contained an update on the progress made against the council's Delivery Plan.

The Delivery Plan was created to describe how the council will deliver on its manifesto pledges, as outlined in its Corporate Plan 2022-2026.

The report provided to the meeting for discussion described the council's work on projects such as:

• The construction of new council homes.
• The provision of EV charging points.
• The development of new district heating schemes.
• The installation of new cycling infrastructure in parks.
• The creation of a new online system for managing planning applications.
• The installation of solar panels on council owned properties.
• The rollout of the council's new Smart Places platform to collect sensor data from buildings and the environment.

The report provided an assessment of each of the projects included in the Delivery Plan. Some of the projects are progressing well, others are facing challenges.