Decision Maker: Cabinet
Decision status: Recommendations Approved (subject to call-in)
Is Key decision?: No
Is subject to call in?: Yes
Decision:
That authority be
delegated to the Director of Children’s Services, in
consultation with the Cabinet Member for Children’s Services,
to award the contracts following the subsequent successful
completion of the procurement process.
Reasons for the decision:
By implementing these
contracts, legislative requirements would be met which stipulate
that the local authority undertakes a relevant procurement process
to award contracts.
Alternative options considered:
Do nothing: This would
result in a continued inequitable offer and high-cost spot
purchased placements. This presented challenges with financial
forecasting along with not having the provision available to meet
the needs of children and young people due to relying on a spot
purchasing process.
Framework only: This
would enable Torbay Council to have more control over the provision
that was being used for children and young people who required a
package for EOTAS however would not resolve the sufficiency issue
in having placements readily available in high quality
provision.
Block contracts only:
This would result in increased control over the provision used
however restricted the flexibility of the EOTAS programme by
limiting the number of providers which were available and therefore
removing aspirational factors from the children and young
people’s education.
Implementation:
This decision will
come into force and may be implemented on 2 January 2025 unless the
call-in procedure is triggered (as set out in the Standing Orders
in relation to Overview and Scrutiny).
Information:
Torbay
Children’s Services currently commissions EOTAS packages with
alternative providers to meet the needs of children and young
people who are unable to attend school and who have an Education,
Health and Care Plan (EHCP). This was undertaken on a spot purchase
basis. The EOTAS packages that children
and young people currently received were often dependent on the
availability of provision and the hours and offer being accessed
can vary hugely.
Torbay Council wanted
to ensure that all children and young people who were unable to
access education within a registered school could continue to
access an impactful and high-quality provision to ensure that they
could continue to get their best out of their education journey, be
supported successfully into adulthood, by having a robust
educational offer despite not attending school. Whilst ensuring that when families and their
children were offered an EOTAS education programme, that it was is
a streamlined process with clear provision in place and available
for a smooth and successful transition into this provision.
There were a high
number of alternative providers which were commissioned by Torbay
Children’s Services with varying impact and outcomes for the
children and young people who access them. There was a need for Torbay Council to have more
control over the provision that was on offer for children and young
people, and to be able to implement an equitable offer for the
vulnerable children and young people who require their education
via an EOTAS package. The contracts being proposed would enable
these huge variations to be reduced and for children and young
people to access what they were entitled to.
At the meeting
Councillor Bye proposed and Councillor Jackie Thomas seconded a
motion that was agreed unanimously by the Cabinet as set out
above.
Interests and Nature of Interests Declared:
Publication date: 20/12/2024
Date of decision: 17/12/2024
Date comes into force if not called in: 01/01/2025
Call-in deadline date: 31/12/2024
Current call-in Count: 0
