York Social Services – auditors critical comments published

Following yesterdays revelations, that senior officials have left York Social Services Department, an Auditors report has provided further information on the background to the developing crisis.

Auditors Mazars, in a report to the Councils Audit and Governance committee next week, include the following paragraph

Risks in relation to Adult Social Care services
Description of the risksAdult social care is identified as one of the highest priorities within the Council’s service transformation programme. During the audit, we have become concerned at the lack of progress in making improvements to budget management and other aspects of adult social care services.

The development of the Better Care Fund provides a major challenge but also a significant opportunity for the Council and CCG to work together to increase investment in much needed intermediate and preventative care.

We are concerned that the lack of progress in delivering service improvement, together with the challenges of the Better Care Fund and the new Care Act, mean that the Council is at risk of failing to deliver good value for money in adult social care services and the best outcomes for local people.

They go on to say “We are working closely with officers to understand the barriers to progress and how they can best be addressed. The Chief Executive has recognised that insufficient progress has been made and has instituted an accelerated recovery and improvement process, working closely with the Director of Health and Wellbeing. We continue to review the Council’s arrangements to secure VFM in its use of resources. This has included reviewing the Council’s key plans and the delivery of those plans, and its financial arrangements, as well as considering the data in VFM profiles”.

scandal-23879094 Social care costs account  for the major part of Council budget expenditure.

If good value for money is not being achieved – and it appears that it isn’t with an overspend last year and a similar situation developing this year – then the whole Council budget is in jeopardy.

That could have a knock on effect on the quality of a wide range of public services provided in the City and on the level of Council Tax which will be levied in future years.

No doubt the Audit Committee will be requiring the attendance of the Cabinet members (Simpson Laing & Cunningham Cross), who have presided over this crisis, to attend their meeting and account for their actions.

Council tax leaflet

In its Tax demand – sent ot all households in the City in March – the Council said

“The city’s demand for adult social care services is increasing at such a rate that by 2019/20 adult care costs are expected to account for 50 per cent of the council’s net budget. The council is investing a further £2.5m for adult care services in 2014/15, to ensure York’s most vulnerable residents are taken care of.

In 2014/15 the council will pay for approximately half the adult care cost increases through an increase in Council Tax, of 1.9 per cent, an average of 37 pence  per household, per week”.

 A full and frank explanation is now required from the Council Leadership

NB. The Council is being criticised in todays media for paying an interim Director £700 a day.

The Council has yet to reveal the costs of the two temporary appointments that it has made to cover the staff who have left the Social Services Department (or the costs of any severance package agreed for those leaving)

Questions being raised about Social Care management in York

scandal-23879094

Following the sacking of the responsible Cabinet member (Cllr Simpson Laing) a few weeks ago we understand other changes are afoot in the York Councils Health and Social Care Department.

The Department has been struggling to manage its budget during the last 3 years and now we understand that two senior managers are leaving the Authority.

No doubt the Councils auditors will be taking an interest in the behind the scenes activities but it is a shame that the Councils “scrutiny” process has proved to be so ineffective.

It is there that problems of this sort should be nipped in the bud.

Hopefully the more vulnerable of York’s residents will not be the real victims of this emerging scandal.

Fairness Conference costs questioned as Huntington concert struggles

york-fairness-conference-logo

Sources with the York Council are saying that the costs – to Council taxpayers – of the recent Fairness Conference could be as much as £10,000. Apparently a similar level of funding has come from a local charity.

If confirmed, the figure will be similar to the amount being cut from the budgets of two York Council community centres both of which serve low income neighbourhoods.

The Foxwood Community Centre in particular is now struggling to find volunteers to continue to run the facility in the wake of the Council cuts.

One major user is moving to other accommodation claiming that the lack of commitment by the Council, to the future of community facilities ,was a factor in their decision.

 An attempt is to be made to form a new management committee in September by which time it is hoped a new core tenant will have been found.

NB. As reported earlier in the week, the Councils Grand Départy Concert on 4 July has run into financial difficulties.

Likely to cost a six figure sum to stage, only a few hundred tickets have been sold so far.

A new act has, however, been added to the lineup for the concert

West Yorkshire Joint Authority – where is York’s money going?

The first meeting of the Joint Authorities investment committee takes place next week. Although an agenda has been published for the meeting which will take place in Leeds, we doubt if many York residents know of its existence.

We believe that the York Council should publicise details of this organisations meetings in the same way that it does its own

closed doorsThe committee will for example discuss a Strategic Economic Plan

Residents, looking for an assurance that the money being invested by York in the regional transport fund will bring early benefits to York, will be disappointed. A report makes little reference to York concentrating on West Yorkshire projects.

A further report on the introduction of superfast Broadband access to York says,

“In York the situation is slightly different in that the current programme is being delivered by North Yorkshire County Council by its wholly owned company NYNET which has ownership of the delivery contract with BDUK. The NYNET contract together with BT’s own commercial investment is forecast to achieve 96% coverage in York by the end of 2014. However, as set out below, the proposal going forward is for York to be part of a joint new programme in collaboration with West Yorkshire”

The report is largely opaque failing to identify communities which do have superfast broadband access and the timetable for those that will be added over the coming months (and years).

With York lagging behind the rest of the Leeds City Region in gaining access to 4G mobile phone networks, there will be a fear that the City will not get value for money from its broadband budget.

All the members of this committee are Labour. York is represented by Cllr “Leftie” Levene, the well known Republican, who allegedly needs a Sat. Nav. to find the bathroom.

Meanwhile there has been some speculation in the media that York’s bid for the HS2 rail college could be  unsuccessful with others in the “Leeds City Region” touting for the project. The Joint Authority has not discussed the issue although its transport chair issued a media release in April

Drunken sailors return to York?

The York council will soon have spent its £28 million “Economic Investment Fund”.

In a final spending spree, before electors have a chance to give a verdict on the “spend, spend, spend” approach of the Labour Council, over £250,000 is to be spent this year on new projects.

One involves the investment of £175,000 in paving the entrance to Hungate/Peasholme Green.

Peasholme Green

Peasholme Green

The justification for the investment is that it will encourage more “return visitors to the area”.

While the Quilt Museum and Black Swan pub (both of which could suffer because of the Councils decision to close the Haymarket car park) may read this with interest, most commentators will think that the private sector should pay for any improvements to Hungate.

This is, after all, adjacent to the site which the Council sold off for a little over £2 million in the depth of the recession.

The prime City centre site – on which Hiscox hope to build offices – has now more than doubled in value.

The project will, however, have little impact on Hungate even after adding in Section S106 contributions which could increase the budget to circa £250,000.

Nearby £300,000 is being spent on paving a very small section of Fossgate, while the controversial resurfacing of Kings Square is costing taxpayers £500,000.

Most of the Council’s EIF budget comes from borrowing. It will add around £1.6 million a year to the debt charges that taxpayers will have to find.

Meanwhile sub-urban shopping and residential eras continue to suffer a decline in public service standards.

Perhaps the most telling comment on the Hungate scheme comes in the Council report itself.

It virtually admits that they have no idea whether the investment will bring any kind of return for the City.

“With respect to the Hungate public realm project, estimating the exact impact of investment in public realm can be difficult, but estimates provided in this report from respected authorities suggest that the impact provides value for money”.

Quite so!

New signposts could cost £200,000 !

Signpost in York

Further to yesterdays story, we are told that the new signposts, planned for the City centre, could cost £200,000.

The plan has been disguised in the Councils published budget as a “wayfinding” project.

Pedestrian signs are less important these days as more and more visitors rely on mobile phone “apps” to find their way around the City.

Liberal Democrat Councillor Keith Aspden comments;

“With frontline services being cut and council tax going up residents will be shocked that Labour is choosing to spend £200,000 on a report into signposts in the city-centre.

The lessons from Lendal Bridge and Kings Square are clearly not being learnt.

Labour need to cut the vanity projects and focus spending on things that actually matter to local residents.”

York signposting revamp cost questioned

The York Council has announced that it is to employ consultants to recommend a new design for “signposts” in York.

Signpost in York

The Council has refused to reveal how much the design work will cost or , indeed, how much changing all York’s signposts would cost.

The Council has been increasingly criticised for neglecting sub-urban shopping and residential areas while ploughing millions into cosmetic improvements to a limited number of city centre streets.

It also faces a potential financial crisis in the wake of the Lendal Bridge/Coppergate affair with many commentators expecting that that Council will be forced to repay the £2 million in fines that it unlawfully imposed..

 The Council’s media release says,

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Budgeting tips to help your money go further

A free booklet ‘Making the Most of Your Money’ is now available for anyone who wants to manage their money better, cut back on spending or get help to pay off debts.

The booklet is available now from York CAB – based at West Offices– and from all York libraries. It can also be downloaded from the council’s website at http://www.york.gov.uk/small_changes and from CAB and York Advice Partnership websites.

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