The Board considered a report of the Strategic Director – Children and Young People providing information on the arrangements for the future commissioning of “Connexions Services”

 

It was advised that, “Youth Matters” required by April 2008 responsibility for commissioning Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG) and the funding that went with it be devolved to local authorities working through children’s trusts, schools and colleges. Local authorities were expected to lead a genuinely collaborative approach and develop new arrangements for delivering IAG that clearly met the needs of young people in the area. These arrangements would be planned and implemented in a way that not only supported the delivery of the 14 – 19 learning entitlement but were integrated into a wider set of Youth Support Services for teenagers and their parents.

 

Local Authorities were responsible and accountable for Youth Policy in their area and were taking responsibility for integrated planning and commissioning of the full range of services for teenagers from universal activities through to more specialist and targeted support. This would enable, over time, universal and targeted services to work closely together to provide integrated support for young people and to improve outcomes for them.

 

“Youth Matters” also made it clear that the support and guidance provided by Connexions should now “go local” so that they could be more fully included and integrated with the whole range of services for young people and their parents and carers. It was intended that the “localisation” of Connexions services would be achieved through the development of an integration Youth Support Strategy at a local level, which would enable a greater coherence of service to young people and their parents/ carers and provide greater efficiency in the way services were procured and delivered locally. More recently, the publication of PSA delivery agreements, and in particular PSA 14, focused upon the objective to “increase the number of children and young people on the path to success”.

 

On 25^th March 2008 the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families wrote to local authorities notifying them of interim arrangements for the delivery of Connexions services and assessments for young people with learning difficulties from 1^st April 2008. The Education and Skills Bill, currently before Parliament, proposed that legal responsibilities be brought into line by effecting transfer to local authorities of the statutory responsibility of Connexions services. Further details were outlined within the report for Members’ consideration together with a number of arrangements that had previously agreed by the Board in November 2007 in preparation for implementation. Progress towards these arrangements had been overseen by a Transition Steering Group comprising of the Chief Executives of Halton, Liverpool and St. Helens; the Directors of Children’s Services at Knowsley, Sefton and the Wirral; and the Chairman being the Chief Executive of Halton Borough Council.

 

In 2008 legal advice received by the participating local authorities indicated that the commissioning of Greater Mersey Connexions Partnership could only occur for 2008/09 and that EU Procurement Regulations would need to be followed from 2009 onwards. As a consequence, work had been underway to secure the commissioning of Connexions services from 2009 – 2011. To assist in this work support had been secured from the Merseyside Efficiency Improvement Partnership (MEIP) which was funding consultants to advise on the details of the specification and procurement process. That work was nearing completion and the next stage would lead into procurement through a process of open competitive dialogue. Additional resources were being sought from the MEIP to fund the project management costs associated with this work.

 

For the period 1^st April 2008 until 31^st March 2009, arrangements had been in place for Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council to be the contract holding authority with Greater Merseyside Connexions Partnership Limited on behalf of the six Merseyside Local Authorities. From the period of the new contract it was proposed that Halton Borough Council becomes the contract holding authority on behalf of the six Merseyside Local Authorities. Contracts would be held with the respective five local authorities to ensure prompt payment on a monthly basis to Halton BC for their share of the contractual commitments with the provider of Connexions Services. A model for this arrangement was already in place with Wirral MBC.

 

Halton’s role in becoming the contract holding authority on behalf of the six participating local authorities would be undertaken on a cost neutral basis. Any costs incurred would be recharged to the participating six local authorities.

 

The currently contract was worth approximately £17.5m and was funded from the Local Area Agreement (LAA) single pot allocations of which had been confirmed until 30^th March 2011.

 

Consideration had been given to the length of any new proposed contract and whether it should be limited by the period of the current funding round and it was proposed that, due to the scale of the contract, and the extensive preparations undertaken across the six local authorities, letting the new contract for the remaining period of ABG would represent poor value for money. It was therefore proposed that the new contract to be let should run from the period 30^th September 2009 until 31^st March 2012 with a further proposed option of extension from for up to three years. Contractually, an appropriate break clause would be included in the contract enabling it to be reduced or ceased subject to appropriate consideration of factors relating to performance or financial sustainability.

 

No changes in status would occur to the pension arrangements for staff as a result of Halton BC becoming the contracting authority with the provider. Wirral MBC would remain as the administering body for the Merseyside Pension Fund to which current employees of Greater Merseyside Connexions Partnership Limited contributed.

 

Reasons For Decision

 

Arrangements for the future delivery of services to young people would affect all young people aged 13 – 19 in the Borough. It would also include the targeting of specialist services to all vulnerable young people to enable them access their universal entitlement.

Alternative Options Considered And Rejected

 

None.

Implementation Date

 

It was intended that the new contractual arrangements would take effect from 1^st October 2009.

 

RESOLVED: That

 

(1)       the existing contract with Greater Merseyside Connexions Partnership be amended to cover the period to 30^th September 2009, pending the completion of procurement processes;

 

(2)       the new contract for Connexions Services should cover the period 30^th September 2009 to 31^st March 2012 with an option of an extension to the contract for a further period of up to three years, but for the contract to accommodate an appropriate break clause in the event of poor performance or reduced financial capacity to commission the service to the level previously agreed;

 

(3)       Halton Borough Council be the lead authority for procurement of the new arrangements on behalf of the six participating local authorities; and

 

(4)       Halton Borough Council become the contract holding authority on behalf of the six participating local authorities from the City Region for the new contract when awarded with the appropriate cross authority commitments.