See answers to previous information requests

The following questions are about care leavers (Aged 18 – 21) placed in supported accommodation who receiving floating support, these young people come under the Leaving Care Act 2000.

1. Who are the currently supported accommodation providers you use for 18+ floating support & accommodation?
Two Saints, People Potential Possibilities. Alma Support; Nest Care; Abiding Care; Willow Tree; Chohan Care Services; Ameliorate; Four Corners; YMCA; Storry Group; West Kite.

2. What provider out of your current list of supported accommodation providers has the majority of your care leavers?
Two Saints, People Potential Possibilities.

3. What is the minimum support hours L.A requirement for 18-21 care leavers in supported accommodation? For example, a min of 2 hours.
Dependent on contract with Provider, some contracts don’t specify an hourly allocation of support, others do. Staff are on site 24/7 usually 5 hours.

4. What is the current minimum cost L.A. pays for 18+ floating accommodations? (Accommodation Only) for example, £500PW per placement depending on support needs.
£230.

5. How many service users were placed with your L.A between the years 2022 - 2023?
23.

6. What are the practical postcodes your L.A placements team require for 18+ service users?
Wokingham Borough and surrounding areas.

7. What are the current issues your L. A’s placement team face when it comes to placing 18+ service users in supported accommodation?
Local supply of placements.

8. What is the placements teams’ budget per week for 18+ placements? For example, £620PW per placement including 3 support hours.
We do not have a set budget per placement, out total budget for 18+ placements is £590,000, so would be £11,315 per week.

9. What is the procedure for your L.A if a provider wishes to join both on-tender & off-tender providers list?
We tender opportunities for SiL’s commissioned by the local authority. Currently we have two schemes. External providers are contacted when we can’t find a placement with our tendered contracts.

10. What are the main KPI's (key performance indicators) your L.A placements team use to separate a good semi-independent service to a bad one specifically for 18+ service users?
We have a service specification and KPIs for our block contracts. See attached file.

11. What are the main factors your L.A Placements team use to ascertain whether a placement / provider is a good match for 18+ service users?
Location, experience and knowledge, Annex A, Price references Care Quality report.

12. What is the L.A's budget for support hours specifically per hour for 18+ service users? For example £21.50 per additional support hour.
We have this in place for 2 contracts, £19.43 and £19.50 per hours.

13. What type of accommodation is needed but in short supply for your L.A placements team ? I.e. studio's, shared, 2 bed flats etc. What is the L.A placements team budget per week for the following accommodation: Studio, 1 bed Flat, 2 bed flat, Shared Accommodation.
We don’t allocated a budget. 1 beds, and studio’s self contained.

14. When does the L.A plan to publish their next tender for 18+ placements?
Autumn 2024.

15. What is L.A's standard procedure before placing an 18+ service user with a provider for the first time? Who are the current providers you use for 18+ unstaffed accommodation?
Prior to any placement beginning, the Commissioning Support Team carry out high-level due diligence checks into the legal entity who operate the service/home. The mainly covers insurances and financial stability checks. We then ensure an appropriate contract is in place, signed between the Council and Provider. Alma Support.