The Conservative-run County Council is set to ask some of the most vulnerable residents in Hertfordshire to contribute more to social care charges to cover up the Government’s failure to fund social care properly.

The move comes at a time when demand for social care is growing, but continued cuts to social care budgets imposed at national level mean Hertfordshire County Council is looking to save £4m in its adult care budget.

Conservative councillors seem determined that it is our most vulnerable residents who should make up the difference. At the most recent Adult Care Services Cabinet Panel they voted to consult users on proposed increases to care charges that could leave some paying more than £130 a week extra for the care they receive. The move was opposed by Liberal Democrat Councillors.

Councillor Ron Tindall, Liberal Democrat Opposition Spokesperson for Adult Care Services and Health and Wellbeing, said: “These cuts are a direct result of the government’s continued failure to properly fund social care. We have some sympathy with the Council’s need to make savings, but these proposals will simply push more vulnerable people into poverty, and will likely mean that some will turn down services that they feel they can no longer afford.” (more…)

Liberal Democrat Councillors successfully moved a motion at St Albans Full Council on Wednesday night calling on the Government to reverse its abandonment of the commitment to allow 3,000  unaccompanied refugee children into the UK.

Moving the motion, Councillor Anthony Rowlands said:

‘Our community and this Council have done excellent work in supporting Syrian refugees over the past two years. Groups, such as Herts for Refugees, have turned words into action and provided practical support both locally and in France.

‘Last May the government agreed to an amendment by Lord Dubs to the Immigration Bill to enable unaccompanied children to come to the UK.  It was understood that homes would be found for 3,000 children. Earlier this month the Home Office disgracefully back-tracked on this commitment  reducing that number to a shameful 350. (more…)

Service users, Staff, Volunteers and Councillors alike were stunned to learn on Monday that a Conservative Councillor made the decision to cancel the £395,000 annual grant to HomeStart without any consultation with either HomeStart, the Health Visitor Service or the Children’s Services.

Monday’s scrutiny of the decision was the result of the Liberal Democrats on Hertfordshire County Council challenging the Conservative-run Cabinet on how and why the decision to axe the Homestart Service was made.

The Conservative Administration claims  that the 270 families whose support the County Council has been funding will be adequately served by the network of Children’s Centres, despite the fact that they are already reeling from a £1.8m cut in funding imposed in May 2015. The claim flies in the face of the fact that the number of families being referred to HomeStart by these same Children’s Centres and Health Visitors has been increasing year on year.

County Councillor Mark Watkin, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Children’s Services stated:  “I could not believe it. The families HomeStart supports are all assessed as having significant needs.  Health Visitors and staff at Children’s Centres do know about these families but don’t actually provide them with support. (more…)

This morning at County Hall there was a heated debate as local staff and volunteers watched to see the fate of the nine Homestart Schemes across the County.

After a petition signed by 2800 Hertfordshire residents was presented by Homestart three motions were presented; one from the Conservative group in favour of slashing funding to the service, and two from the Labour and Liberal Democrat benches seeking to save the Service.

The Conservative administration refused to listen to political arguments or the pleas of the Homestart staff and volunteers and voted three times to axe funding to this lifeline for vulnerable families.

Speaking with passion, and with with experience as a Home Start family support visitor, County councillor Sara Bedford (Abbots Langley) said, “I found a report moved by a certain young Cllr Gordon, when he was the Executive member for Children Schools and Families.

“I quote – ‘The schemes in Hertfordshire are well managed, deliver good outcomes and save money well in excess of funding for the schemes.’, I quote – ‘Providing more support at lower levels for children and families provide better outcomes because such children and families tend not to need higher level services’. (more…)

On Monday afternoon, a group of HomeStart Managers, volunteers, and families  with their young children watched in  dismay as the Conservative Cabinet of Hertfordshire County Council voted unanimously  not to renew its annual funding of £392,000 for the home visiting service. This decision would also cut off the £206,000 funding provided by the County’s Clinical Commissioning Groups resulting in a devastating reduction of £598,000 a year to HomeStart’s funds. The impact on HomeStart and its committed band of trained volunteers will be incalculable

In the report to Cabinet this service was described as popular with its service users.  It had proved that a charity staffed by volunteers could engage with hard-to-reach families whereas the  Children’s Centres could not.  In spite of this, the justification for these cuts, was that the need for home servicing had changed. Somehow the recently reorganised groups of Children’s Centres, themselves  struggling from having a £1.3 million cut in their funding together with the County’s recently restructured Health Visitor service will now be able to support those very families that in the past they had failed. How, was never explained nor how it would be paid for. While the contracted number of families supported is 395, the actual figure that HomeStart support is over 1,100. (more…)

Sandy Walkington and Chris White are supporting HomeStart in its campaign to maintain county council funding support

At Thursday’s Children’s Services Cabinet Panel, 40 angry incredulous HomeStart managers, Chairs, volunteers and clients heard the Conservative members of the Children’s Services Cabinet Panel support the complete cut of support to the 9 HomeStart Branches in the county, worth £395,000 per annum from September 2015 as recommended by officers.  In so doing they voted down a motion from the Liberal Democrats that they should go to tender so that they could judge the relative value of the services HomeStart provide before making any final decision.

HomeStart  provides targeted support to over 700 families referred to it by Children’s Centres, Health Visitors, GPs, social workers and self-referrers. The common thread about these families, whatever issues they present, is that they are unable to access the services provided by these very professionals. It is claimed that in some unexplained way, apart from setting targets,  these professionals will now fill the gap left by HomeStart. Without this core funding, many of the HomeStart branches face financial crisis and may not be able to continue. (more…)

Members of Hertfordshire County Council Children’s Services Cabinet Panel yesterday received additional papers announcing the withdrawal of the annual £391,000 grant to the 9 HomeStart operations which cover the county. Their role will now be added to the increasingly complex range of tasks to be handled by the 91 Children’s Centres.

By withdrawing the £391,000 annual grant to the nine HomeStart centres across the county on the basis that it could be supplied by Children’s Centres , the Conservative County Council is putting the future stability of 395 client families at risk. Without the close support of the Homestart volunteers who help them in their homes, many of these families will disintegrate. Likewise the local HomeStart teams will almost certainly have to close for lack of sufficient funding. (more…)