Zero-star rating for poor care provision

Apr 16 2009 by Dave Black, The Journal

A CARE programme which aims to help vulnerable people in Northumberland cope with housing problems has been branded a poor service for the second time in two years by national watchdogs.

The county council gets £7m a year in Government funding to run the Supporting People scheme, but today the service has received a zero-star rating – out of a maximum of three stars – by the Audit Commission.

The council has received the funding every year since 2003, but independent inspectors says the service is poor with uncertain prospects for improvement. When it was last inspected in 2007, the Commission also gave it a zero-star rating and described it as poor.

The service is designed to support vulnerable people at risk of being unable to stay in their own home because they can’t cope with independent living, including those with mental health problems, learning disabilities and the elderly. It is also supposed to help those fleeing domestic violence, young homeless people and teenage parents, and funds about 4,500 supported accommodation places. Yesterday care chiefs in Northumberland claimed the zero-star rating is unfairly harsh, and said the Commission’s report fails to properly acknowledge the good work of the service.

The report says many people in the county have complained they were unable to access the full amount of help available to them. It also criticises delays in delivering assistance to particularly vulnerable people who needed extra help to continue to live in their own home, as well as the high cost of running the programme.

Yvonne Davies, head of housing north at the Audit Commission, said the county council had ‘failed to significantly improve services’. “Northumberland County Council is not delivering support to all the vulnerable people in the county who need help to maintain a tenancy and live independently in their own homes.

“The cost of some services remains high when compared to other local authorities. However, partners, including elected members and service users, are now involved and have shown a clear commitment to making improvements and supporting the service.”

Yesterday the county council and Northumberland Care Trust said the recent creation of an all-purpose unitary authority will result in better service integration in areas such as housing and commissioning. They said the Audit Commission report has identified a number of strengths and weaknesses in the service.

Commenting on the report, Barry Lydon, who chairs the county council provider board, said the Supporting People programme continued to face a number of challenges. He added: “There was a disproportionate emphasis on the less positive views from a small number of providers, which skewed the general good and improving relationship between Supporting People and providers in Northumberland.”