The Adults and Health Scrutiny Panel met to discuss the Haringey Carers Strategy 2025-2028, receive a finance update for Quarter 3 of 2024/25, and get a performance update for Quarter 3 of the Corporate Delivery Plan. The panel was also scheduled to discuss its work programme for 2025/26.

Here's a breakdown of the topics that were expected to be covered:

Haringey Carers Strategy 2025-2028

The panel was scheduled to receive an update on the development of the Haringey Carers Strategy 2025-2028. The strategy aims to support unpaid carers in Haringey, recognising their vital role in the community.

The strategy focuses on:

• Improving access to information and support for carers.
• Strengthening carers' rights, wellbeing, and resilience.
• Creating inclusive and culturally responsive services.

The strategy recognises carers of all ages, backgrounds and circumstances, including young carers, parent carers, working-age carers and older carers.

The strategy identifies several challenges and areas for improvement from the previous strategy, including:

• Accessibility and responsiveness of services
• Empathy and understanding from service providers
• Timely and inclusive assessments and reviews
• Clarity around rights and entitlements
• Housing repairs and adaptations
• Identification of carers
• Engagement with young adult carers
• Employment and flexible work opportunities
• Workforce awareness and culture change

The strategy outlines six strategic priorities:

• Getting the basics right, including identification of carers, improved accessibility, assessments and reviews, carer resilience and emergency planning, and housing repairs and adaptation.
• Information and communication, including improved communication, one stop shops and carers drop-ins, minimum standards for carer support, and digital inclusion and training.
• Health and wellbeing, including carer empowerment, social, emotional, health, and wellbeing services, carers health checks, stress management and mindfulness, and tackling health inequalities.
• Respite and breaks, including simplifying processes, planning and payments, range of respite options, and innovation.
• Financial resilience and employment, including practical support, increase concessions, benefits maximisation, debt management, flexible working, and support in accessing paid work.
• Training, including training for safe care, partnering with the voluntary sector and local businesses.

The strategy includes an action plan for 2025-2026, with actions to be taken by November 2026.

The strategy also includes a series of measures of success, including local key performance indicators, data sources, and responsible bodies.

Q3 Finance Update

The panel was scheduled to discuss the parts of the Q3 Finance Update report relating to Adult Social Care services. The report provides a financial overview for Quarter 3 of 2024/25, covering the General Fund Revenue, Capital, Housing Revenue Account (HRA), and Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) budgets.

Key points from the report include:

• The council is forecast to overspend by £37.2m, with significant pressures in adult social care, housing demand, and children's services.
• The adult social care forecast overspend has increased since Quarter 2, due to rising demand for support packages, particularly from younger adults aged 50-64.
• The report highlights risks related to increasing inflation, high interest rates, and housing market challenges.
• The report recommends actions to reduce non-essential spending and review the council's balance sheet.
• The Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) is forecast to overspend by £2.6m, mainly in the High Needs Block (HNB) for children with Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND).
• The Housing Revenue Account (HRA) reports a forecast surplus of £5.976m.
• The General Fund capital forecast spend is £79.235m, and the HRA capital forecast spend is £239.4m.

The report also includes details of debt write-offs approved in Quarter 3, totalling £9,401,593.75.

Corporate Delivery Plan - Q3 Performance Update

The panel was scheduled to discuss the parts of the Corporate Delivery Plan - Q3 Performance Update report relating to Adult Social Care services. The report provides a performance update for Quarter 3 of 2024/25, assessing progress against the actions outlined in the Corporate Delivery Plan 2024-2026.

Key points from the report include:

• Overall, 92% of activities are rated as green or amber, indicating good progress.
• Notable achievements include bringing leisure services in-house and progress on delivering new council homes.
• The report highlights areas where milestones have not been achieved, with explanations for the delays.

The report is organised around eight themes:

1. Resident experience and enabling success
2. Responding to the climate emergency
3. Children and young people
4. Adults, health, and welfare
5. Homes for the future
6. Safer Haringey
7. Culturally rich Haringey
8. Place and economy

The report uses a Red Amber Green (RAG) status approach to assess progress against time, budget, resources, risk, and benefits.

Work Programme Update

The panel was scheduled to consider any additions or amendments to its work programme for 2025/26. Possible additional items for the work programme included:

• Communications with residents
• Impact of housing conditions on health and wellbeing
• Autism Strategy 2021-2031
• Self-neglect and hoarding
• Weight Management
• Adult social care: New ways of working
• Care homes
• Budget
• Osborne Grove Nursing Home
• Health & Wellbeing Strategy
• Gambling harms
• Dementia services
• Smoke-free Strategy
• Continuing Healthcare
• Modern Slavery
• Adult Social Care Commissioning and Co-production Board
• LGA Peer Review
• Workforce reform agenda
• Integrated Care System (ICS)
• Direct Payments
• Grant Review (BCF-S75)
• Supported Living Review