“The Care Act 2014 places clear legal responsibilities on the Council where a care provider fails.
It makes it clear that local authorities have a temporary duty to ensure that the needs of people continue to be met should their care provider become unable to continue to provide care because of business failure, no matter what type of care they are receiving.
Should a care provider fail financially and services cease, the Local Authority must take steps to ensure that all people receiving care do not experience a gap in the services they need.
What arrangements, if any, are in place to enable the council to meet these obligations?
Devon County Council (DCC) monitors provider risk and acts proactively to support providers both in terms of quality assurance and commercial viability. DCC also liaises regularly with the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
DCC’s response is tailored to the individual circumstances of each provider.
Does the council have a provider failure contingency plan, and if so where can a copy be obtained?
DCC monitors risk and our Quality Assurance and Improvement Team offers support to providers to improve quality and safety of care. This is detailed in our Provider Quality Support Policy, with data sharing governed by our Data Sharing Agreement. Both are publicly available on the DCC website here under the heading “Quality”.
In the event of provider failure, DCC draws upon procedural guidance developed locally based on ADASS and other guidance, available here. This is targeted at officers involved in the process of supporting providers, service users and families.
Does the council have an identified provider or partner to support them in the event of provider failure, if yes, what is the name and business address of this partner?”
No.