Council makes ‘shock’ decision to withdraw from partnership supporting elderly

Nicholas Thomas, Local Democracy Reporter

A county council plans to withdraw from a partnership supporting elderly and frail people, and instead run its own services.

The Gwent Frailty programme has run since 2011, focusing on preventative care and helping people to return home from hospital.

But Caerphilly and the region’s four other local authorities have all declared their plans to leave the partnership.

A council scrutiny committee heard concerns the “shock” decision would leave people worse off and at risk of longer hospital stays.

Cllr Judith Pritchard said disbanding Gwent Frailty “runs counter to most of the current thinking about health and social care – that in order to alleviate the considerable problems faced by both, [they] should be amalgamated or at least brought closer together”.

She claimed a report on the withdrawal “seems to prioritise budget over service” and indicated the move was “a done deal”.

“The aim of Gwent Frailty is to keep people – mainly elderly people – out of hospital in the first place, and to facilitate hospital discharge so that beds are not occupied by people who no longer need them,” said Cllr Pritchard.

“We are all aware, I’m sure, of the queues of ambulances outside the A&E in the Grange, in Cwmbran, because patients can’t be admitted because there are no beds.

“Getting people out of hospital when they’re clinically fit should be a priority for us all – Gwent Frailty made a contribution to this.”

However, Cllr Teresa Heron, the cabinet member for social care, said the councils’ decisions to leave the shared service was “not about withdrawing from partnership working”.

“Rather, it’s about creating arrangements that provide greater local accountability, flexibility and responsiveness to the needs of our residents, while continuing to work closely with our health colleagues,” she said.

Cllr Heron said Caerphilly would gain “greater control” over the services provided under the Gwent Frailty programme, and the current year would be a “transition” period without any changes.

Jo Williams, the council’s director of adult services, said there was “no plan to reduce the service or reorganise it at this present time”, and Caerphilly directly employs its own support staff for elderly and frail people.

“I really do see this as an opportunity… to refocus [and] look at place-based care within Caerphilly,” she told the committee.

She added the region’s five local authorities were “in agreement” to leave the partnership, adding the local health board had “wanted exactly the same across the whole of Gwent, which was very difficult to achieve and didn’t take into account variations that were there in community needs”.

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