To seek approval to commission, by means of a competitive tender process, a housing-related support service for vulnerable young people, complimented by an offer of targeted and universal prevention services specifically developed for vulnerable young people aged 16 to 25.

The head of community commissioning and resources and the senior commissioning officer for the project attended for this item.

The cabinet member health and adult wellbeing introduced the item. The proposed initiative was part of wider work to reshape the market for vulnerable young people. A complimentary new provision to accommodate care leavers with complex needs was due to commence shortly. The proposed service had been designed in consultation with young people to make sure that the service reflected their needs. Those using the accommodation would have their own front door with support on hand, tailored to different levels of need. It was hoped that the floating support / outreach offer would give landlords of private and social rented accommodation the confidence to accept young people as tenants.

Points noted from discussion of the report included:

·        It was anticipated that these young people would welcome the chance to learn the skills to transition to adulthood successfully and it was important to have buy in from the young people themselves;

·        Support workers would recognise trigger points and adjust the level of support provided in order to mitigate risks as much as possible;

·        A sinking fund could be set up to meet occasional costs of repair if properties were damaged but there was not expected to be much need for this;

·        There were many benefits to having these young people living closer to home and it also contributed to a reduction in costs to the council by reducing the need for provision outside the county;

·        The accommodation was being delivered with no capital outlay by the council;

·        Support provided would include looking at how to be financially independent and access employment and training;

·        The accommodation to be provided would not be suitable for wheelchair users but the floating support package could help provide support using other accommodation adapted for their needs;

·        It was requested that the equality impact assessment be updated to reference support for young people with physical disabilities.

Cabinet members noted the following points in considering comments and questions from group leaders:

·        There was widespread support for the proposed service;

·        The focus was on provision in Hereford as consultation with young people showed this was where they wanted to reside as it had better access to education and training opportunities, the floating support offer would allow young people to move back to the market towns once they had transitioned.

The chairperson of the children and young people scrutiny committee welcomed the proposal. The scrutiny committee had not considered this service but had reviewed the parallel service for young people with more complex needs. The head of community commissioning and resources agreed to investigate if it were possible to arrange for scrutiny committee members to visit the accommodation. It was noted that the scrutiny committee would want to review the impact of the new service after 18 months or so.

The chairperson of the adults and wellbeing scrutiny committee supported the wider approach and recognised the role of councillors as corporate parents.

It was resolved that:

(a)     the commissioning by way of an open procurement process of an accommodation support service, along with floating support and mediation services for vulnerable young people, aged 16 to 25 years, be approved; and

(b)     authority be delegated to the director of adults and communities, following consultation with the director for children and families and cabinet members, to award a contract for housing related support services for a period of up to five years and maximum cost of £3.1m.