Accommodating Care Leavers - Find a freedom of information request

1. How do you currently accommodate care leavers/young people (16-24 years old) within your borough?

2. How do you currently provide floating support to 16-24 years old within your borough?

3. Can you explain your commissioning processes for the following in respect to 16-24 years old: a) private accommodation, b) private accommodation with support and c) floating support providers Do you spot purchase, have framework contracts/agreements or block contracts for these services?

4. Do organisations need to go through the tendering process to accommodate and/or provide support for 16-24 years on a spot purchase basis?

5. For 16-17 years old do you require accommodation and/or support providers to be Ofsted registered?

6. Please specify the number of 16-24 years old you have accommodated in private supported accommodation on a spot purchase basis within the last 12 months? Please break this down between 16-17 and 18-24 users.

7. Do you operate an approved providers list of private accommodation and/or support providers?

8. How many 16-17 years old are currently in private supported accommodation? How many are in private accommodation with floating support provided?

9. How many 18-24 years old are currently in private supported accommodation? How many are in private accommodation with floating support provided?

10. Please specify the type of support provided for each category in the two questions immediately above - 1) housing support only or 2) housing and personal support or 3) housing with personal support and personal care.

11. What is the average weekly cost of placing 16-17 years olds in private supported accommodation? Please split the cost separately between the cost of support and the cost of accommodation.

12. What is the average weekly cost of placing 18-24 years old in private supported accommodation? Please split the cost separately between the cost of support and the cost of accommodation.

13. How can a private residential care/private supported accommodation or a floating support provider approach the council when wishing to introduce their service - who is the specific point of contact?

14. Who should be approached within the council to discuss commissioning, service provision, rates, and referrals?

15. Please can you provide me with a list of all of your top 5 suppliers for private supported accommodation in respect to 16-24-year olds?

16. Please can you provide me with a list of all of your top 5 suppliers for floating support in respect to 16-24-year olds?

1. There are a number of ways Lincolnshire County Council Children's Services commission accommodation for care leavers/young people within Lincolnshire:

a) A Youth Housing contract, awarded through procurement, which provides accommodation and support to 16-17 year olds who are homeless and care leavers aged 16-21 – this offers 72 beds in 3 locations.

b) There are a mix of independent unregulated (INSA [Intense Needs Supported Accommodation] and supported accommodation) and regulated placements (IFA, residential and Independent Non-Maintained [Special] Schools) spot purchased through an Open Select List, as well as in-house fostering and residential and a number of Staying Put fostering arrangements. [NB: where any question below relates to supported accommodation, we will not include information related to regulated settings as they do not fit the definition of 'supported accommodation'.]

c) Lincolnshire County Council has two in-house unregulated young people's homes for children in care and care leavers aged 16-17.

d) The commissioned Leaving Care Service (awarded via procurement) supports a number of supported accommodation providers across the county offering family-based accommodation to care leavers, termed Supported Lodgings, aged 16-21 years.

e) Commissioning arrangements (awarded via procurement – a Closed Ordered List) to accommodate and support Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children and former-UASC care leavers aged 16-21.

2. Children Services commission some floating support as part of the Youth Housing contract detailed above; however this is not currently commissioned as a stand-alone service in Children's Services. Support to care leavers is delivered by Barnardo's who are commissioned to deliver Lincolnshire's Leaving Care Service; this includes former UASC care leavers who may remain in accommodation-only placements pending an asylum decision.

3. a) & b) Children Services commission a Youth Housing service that was procured through an Open Tender process in 2019/20. Where this contract is not suitable i.e. where other options such as Residential Care or a Special School placement would better meet the needs of the individual, these are spot purchased through a mini competition using Children's Services Open Select List process. In addition, there is a Closed Ordered List process in place for Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASC). This arrangement is similar but was a full tender when initially commissioned so does not fall under spot purchase arrangements, and supports spontaneous arrivals as required, with the successful suppliers based just outside Lincolnshire. Both commissioning arrangements were also procured through the Open Tender Process.

c) see response to Q2.

4. Yes – Lincolnshire's Open Select List is a tender mechanism that re-opens annually and requires suppliers to submit initial contract assurance to be admitted onto the list so that they can then receive any relevant placement referrals in advance of the wider market. The Youth Housing contract was commissioned through a full Open Tender process, as was the Leaving Care service. Such opportunities are advertised on ProContract and Source Lincolnshire

5. It is appropriate for accommodation and/or support providers to be regulated via Ofsted registration if a young person remains in the same placement post-16, but Lincolnshire does not require providers caring for young people aged 16+ to be Ofsted registered unless the nature of the support and provision so requires. However, Lincolnshire has a strong contract assurance and contract management framework that applies to unregulated accommodation via the Open Select List arrangements (see Q7 for further information). Lincolnshire abides by the Ofsted determination of what constitutes regulated and unregulated care when making placements to ensure young people are placed in the right setting.

6. We have accommodated: •26 x 16-24 year olds (26 x 16-17 year olds and 0 x 18-24 year olds) in the last 12 months (financial year 2020-21 – INSA placements on a spot purchase basis via the Open Select List); of these 26 INSA placements, 9 were placed in-borough i.e. within Lincolnshire

7. In Children's Services, we do not operate an 'approved providers list'; however the Open Select List process we operate (see Q4) does allow providers to submit their details to the LA to join the list. Once on the list, mini competitions are distributed to those providers in the first instance, when an individual placement is required.

8. In Children's Services, as of 26-04-21 there are:

• 20 x 16-17 year olds in private supported accommodation (UASC and Spot Purchased Supported Accommodation)

• 40 within the Youth Housing contract

• 5 x 16-17 year olds in supported lodgings through the Lincolnshire Leaving Care Contract

9. In Children's Services, as of 26-04-21 there are:

• 31 x 18-24 year olds in private supported accommodation (Care Leavers in UASC and Spot Purchased Supported Accommodation)

• 18 in Youth Housing (with an element of floating support included in the service offer)

• 12 x 18-24 year olds in supported lodgings through the Lincolnshire Leaving Care Contract

10. Housing and personal support for 16-17 year olds and a few eligible 18+ year olds. Most 18+ year olds in supported accommodation will receive support from their Leaving Care Service Personal Adviser if they are a care leaver. Personal care will only be provided in regulated settings and does not meet the definition of supported accommodation.

11. Average weekly cost for UASC & INSA placements for 16-17 year olds for all young people currently in placement is £1,202 per week. The local authority will pick up some accommodation costs for some of the cohort, others will claim via the District Council. Costs for UASC are £277 per week, comprising £115 per week for support and £162 for accommodation. INSA placements range from £939 to £6,810 per week (average £3,498 per week); given the complexity and variety of support packages for this cohort, these figures include both accommodation and support.

The Youth Housing contract is an annual sum for support hours with the local authority paying for accommodation costs (c. £250/week) where applicable; it is difficult to reduce the support costs to an average per person rate as this will depend upon occupancy; however, if full all year round, the weekly cost is c. £426.21 per person per week.

12. Average weekly placement cost for former-UASC care leavers 18-24 year olds currently accommodated by Lincolnshire is £160 per week. There are 2 INSA placements for 18+ year olds, both of which are pending a transfer to Adult Services accommodation arrangements, with an average cost of £2,975 per week; given the complexity and variety of support packages for this cohort, these figures include both accommodation and support. For the Youth Housing contract pls see answer above.

13. Suppliers should email their Statement of Purpose along with any other relevant details about the services offered to LCCPlacements@lincolnshire.gov.uk; this will enable the Children's Placements team to add details to their supplier lists in the event that an independent placement is required.

14. The LCC Placements team will be able to update the relevant Commissioning Officer within Children's Strategic Commissioning. It is anticipated that we will be in a position to make a Market Position Statement available in the near future which will cover future projections and anticipated areas of focus. The OSL will also re-open later this year for the final time in the current 5-year procurement cycle – the Placements Team will ensure all known suppliers are informed about the opportunity when it is due to go live, though as previous, acceptance onto the OSL is no guarantee of business.

15. Nacro, Sixteen Plus, Barnardo's (though note that supported lodgings providers are self-employed), Locate Accommodation & 24-7 Support UK Ltd

16. See response to Q.2 and Q.15

Please see answers below for 18-24 years old from adult services

1. Working Age Adults of the age 18+ with assessed care and support needs (learning disability, physical disability, autism) are accommodated with the support,where support is necessary, of the relevant LHA (District Council's in Lincolnshire) and/or their commissioned care and support provider.

LCC also commissions a Housing Related Support Service which offers two main levels of support (floating support and an accommodation based support service) to vulnerable eligible service users aged 18 and over. This could include care leavers.

2. For Working Age Adults of the age 18+ with assessed care and support needs (learning disability, physical disability, autism), care and support is provided through the Council's Community Supported Living Open Select List Framework

If an adult aged 18+ meets the eligibility criteria for the service (summarised below):

• Require support and need to develop new/improved skills to manage a tenancy/mortgage independently of support services.

AND

• Have an identified or suspected mental health need which impacts on their ability to secure or maintain a tenancy/mortgage.

AND/OR

• Have an identified or suspected substance misuse issue which impacts on their ability to secure and maintain a tenancy/mortgage.

AND

• Meets the eligibility triage score to qualify for the service.
• then they will qualify for a short term Housing Related Support Service either:
• Floating Support* – Up to a maximum of 6 months.
• Accommodation-based support – Up to a maximum of 6 months.
• Priority for support in both accommodation based and floating support is given to care leavers who meet the eligibility criteria for the service
•  The Housing Related Support Service (Adults 18+) is a contracted service with a single provider of a countywide service

3. LCC is not a Local Housing Authority and does not commission private accommodation in isolation of care and support for adults in Lincolnshire

b) And c):

i) For Working Age Adults of the age 18+ with assessed care and support needs (learning disability, physical disability, autism), care and support is provided through the Council's Community -Supported Living Open Select List Framework – call off procedures vary according to the type of service required and can either be subject to a direct call off or further competition

ii) Adults aged 18+ meeting the eligibility criteria for the Housing Related Support Service are referred directly by Lincolnshire's LHA's to the contracted service provider

4. For adults, accommodation is not commissioned in isolation of care and support requirements. The contracted services described in questions 1 – 3 are all subject to tender processes.

5. N/A

6. For the 18-24 age group – None (LCC does not spot purchase supported accommodation)

7. LCC operates an 'Open Select List Framework' For Working Age Adults of the age 18+ with assessed care and support needs (learning disability, physical disability, autism). Note this is not a framework of accommodation providers; it is a framework of care and support providers.

8. N/A

9. LCC does not record or hold this information

10. N/A

11. N/A

12. N/A

13. For services to adults (18+) a provider can submit details of the service(s) they wish to introduce to commercialteampeopleservices@lincolnshire.gov.uk and the enquiry will be passed to the relevant contact point

14. For services to adults (18+) a provider can commercialteampeopleservices@lincolnshire.gov.uk with details of the services for which they wish to discuss commissioning, service provision, rates and referrals and the enquiry will be passed to the relevant contact point

15. N/A - For adults – services are commissioned for all adults aged 18+ or for all working age adults aged 18-64

16. N/A - For adults – services are commissioned for all adults aged 18+ or for all working age adults aged 18-64