Issue - items at meetings - Housing First re-procurement

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Housing First re-procurement

Meeting: 16/09/2020 - Housing Committee (Item 100)

100 Commissioning of a Housing First Service for Single Homeless People PDF 370 KB

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Decision:

RESOLVED:

That Housing Committee:

2.1 Approves the procurement and award of a contract for the provision of a Housing First Service for single homeless people for a period of five years with the option to extend for a maximum of two further years.

2.2 Grants delegated authority to the Executive Director for Health & Adult Social Care or the Interim Executive Director Housing Neighbourhoods & Communities to carry out the procurement of the services referred to in 2.1 above including the award of the contract.

2.3 That the Executive Director for Health & Adult Social Care or the Executive Director Housing Neighbourhoods & Communities seek authority of the Housing Committee prior to the expiry of the initial contract period of 5 years if it is recommended that the contract be extended under the extension provisions exercisable by the council under the terms of the contract.

2.4 Delegates authority to the Executive Director of Health & Adult Social Care or the Executive Director Housing Neighbourhoods & Communities on confirmation of the award of funding by the MHCLG in response to a bid made by the Council for the purposes of financing Housing First units of accommodation, to increase the value of the procurement and subsequent contract award to reflect the amount of grant awarded (maximum of £312,000.00) and to enable the provision of a minimum of number of additional units pro-rated to the value of the grant awarded on the basis that the maximum grant of £312,000.00 will fund a minimum of 35 additional units.

2.5 To report regularly to Homeless Reduction Board on the progress and

outcomes of the service.

Minutes:

100.1 The Commissioning & Performance Manager introduced the report which was to seek approval from Housing Committee for the tender of a contract to deliver a Housing First Service for single homeless persons to be procured in accordance with Public Contract Regulations (PCR) and Contract Standing Orders for a period of five years with the option to extend for a maximum of two further years from January 2021 to December 2028.

100.2 Councillor Williams thanked the officers for the report and considered the information good news and stated their support.

100.3 Councillor Atkinson requested that the committee support the report and noted that the research into universal credit needs to be part of the strategy.

100.4 Councillor Mears expressed concerns regarding the following financial implications in the report: 7.4: The commissioning lead officer has advised that if there is any reduction in the currently identified funding streams over the course of this contract then it will be necessary to make efficiencies within the wider Housing related support budget to ensure ongoing funding for the Housing First contract; 7.5: From a financial perspective there is a significant ongoing risk from awarding a 5 year contract when there is insufficient permanent funding and; 7.15: There are risks if the short term funding from MHCLG or the council ends. These risks have been assessed and there is a plan in place to sustain the contract from existing resource if this became necessary. Other services would have to be ended to meet these costs. The Councillor expressed further concerns that a plan B did not seem to be in place. The Commissioning & Performance Manager informed the councillor that the financial position was difficult with the contract ending in January 2021 and Housing First needed to be sustained. The Councillor stated they would be abstaining from the vote on the recommendations.

100.5 Councillor Hill was informed that the figures in the report could be quantified by looking at past figures and these would be passed onto the committee.

100.6 Councillor Osborne considered the report a good news story for the council and more ambition would be good. The councillor was informed that the housing team were working hard to reduce the 55 still in COVID-19 accommodation and timescales were already in place.

100.7 Councillor Hugh-Jones considered that the title interim should be deleted from the Executive Director Housing Neighbourhoods & Communities as this would cover a future where the executive director was not interim.

100.8 A motion to remove the word interim was proposed by Councillor Hugh-Jones and seconded by Councillor Gibson.

100.9 The Chair put the motion to the vote and it was agreed unanimously.

100.10

The Chair put the recommendations to the vote and they were agreed by a majority vote of 7 to 2 abstentions. (Councillor Phillips was not able vote due to technical difficulties).