Community Lives Consortium

Service Coordinator Forum 20th April 2010

• Changes to QSMR
  Jane Devoy from the Admin Team told us about some changes to the QSMR.
  Under Section 3 Tenants Lives – Active Support, two fields have been changed. We now require the figure from the Participation Record for ‘Total number of Participations recorded for quarter’ and the amount for ‘Number of Teaching Plans in progress’. Guidelines will be sent out with the new QSMR ready for quarter one.
  A discussion followed. Some Service Co’s said that they are not using teaching plans at the moment.
  Service Co’s should let Jane know if they want electronic copies of the QSMR. However they will still need to be printed when complete as Contract and Monitoring require paper copies.
  

• Health and Safety Committee
  The Director of Community Services asked for a volunteer to represent Service Co’s on the Health and Safety Group to replace Andrew Dennis.
  David Martin, Service Co at Rivendale volunteered to attend.
  

• Staff Unable to Return from Abroad
  Any staff who have been unable to return to work due to the disruption to air travel will have two options regarding any work time they have missed.
  Option One: The time lost at work is taken off their current Annual Leave entitlement.
  Option Two: The time lost at work is taken as unpaid leave.
  There may be a problem if staff who are due to go on holidays are now unable to fly, and may ask to cancel their annual leave and re-book it at a later date. There were concerns that it may not be possible to fit their contracted hours onto the rota and difficult to re allocate the annual leave at a later date.
  

• Activity Centre/Office Update
  The Activity Centre is ready for use, although it is not completely furnished yet and will not be officially open until May.
  The venue consists of a Community Room with its own access, toilet and kitchen area; there is a Board Room or meeting room with tea making facilities and a large Training Room with an independent kitchen.
  There is also a foyer and toilet area between the Board Room and The Training Room.
  The current Training Room at Walter Rd will still be available for training events, meetings, Forums etc as usual.
  All room bookings for the Training Room at Walter Rd and the new facilities at the Activity Centre will be made through Sam Hilton who is based in the Accounts Department.
  Community Solutions staff, currently based at Eet are relocating to 24, Walter Rd at the end of the month. This is partly because they want to come back but also as part of the efficiency savings needed as a result of cuts in Local Authority grants paid to us.
  Community Solutions will occupy the office space on the 2nd floor currently used by the Training Department and Terry’s former office.
  The Training Department will relocate to the Resource Room so the Resource room is no longer available as a meeting room; all bookings have been moved to the new Activity Centre.
  In line with efficiency savings, the Satellite offices at Pontardawe and Gorseinon are also closing when the current leases come to an end and the use of other external venues will be reduced. The office at Rhodes House, Port Talbot is unaffected at the moment as we do not pay any rent to the Local Authority although this may change in the future.
  The Activity Centre will be available for use until 10 p.m. Monday to Friday for any meetings.
  

• Room 101 – Excessive Paperwork
  Peter Russell joined the meeting as agreed at the last Forum. He told us that he has received very little feedback since the last Forum and nothing via the dedicated email address.
  However, following the feedback at the previous Forum, there has been some good progress around the excessive paperwork generated by support plans. Peter will come back towards the end of today’s meeting with an example.
  Also, following the discussion last time relating to the amount of ‘policies’ staff are expected to read, Peter said that we are looking at introducing a ‘traffic light’ system for Consortium policies as follows:-
  • Red – URGENT – policy to be read regularly by staff.
  • Amber – policy to be read by staff if relevant to the service or individual service user
  • Green – Staff need to know it exists and where to locate it when necessary
  Some teams have started to look at policies together with the Team Co. One policy per staff meeting.
  Further discussion followed, most Service Co’s are happy to move towards more electronic recordings – as long as scheme computers are working! (Several schemes have been off-line recently) Also we need to look at digital signatures for some documents.
  It was suggested that the Interactive Audits take too long to record and are unnecessary. A discussion followed and other Service Co’s generally agreed that nothing is gained by using the Interactive Audit – it can often put staff off what should be an enjoyable activity.  Also, less paperwork means more time with the Service Users.
  The ‘Room 101’ concept will now end and instead, Peter and his team will meet with Service Co’s at the schemes to talk individually about how to reduce paper systems built up over 20 years.
  For example, do we need ‘daily diaries’, or do we just record any changes? Families may object to a reduction in paperwork as it is evidence of our accountability.
  Video clips can be used as evidence of an activity instead. This can avoid cutting a day short to give staff time to ‘do the paperwork’. An recent example was given of how this can work well.
  Peter then left the meeting and returned later to show us a video clip of a support plan – in this case how to support a service user to brush his teeth.
  A discussion followed and everyone agreed that the video clip gave a more comprehensive overview of the support needed than the written version.
  Peter was asked what happens if the service user is unable or unwilling to agree to take part in the video clip?
  • The Care Manager can agree if the Service User is unable to make the choice.
  • Staff can’ talk through’ the support plan if the Service User does not want to take part
  • Role play can be used if a practical demonstration is required
  • Video clips may not be appropriate for very sensitive issues such as personal care.
  Peter acknowledged that some staff don’t like being filmed. We need to encourage staff to get involved. Multi media is much more common in society generally and being filmed or photographed in line with work will become more acceptable in future.
  

• Pension Contribution
  The Personnel and Administration Manager has asked us to remind everyone that the Consortium’s pension contributions for Service Co’s have been increased to 8% from April 2010.
  
• Supervision and Appraisals - Evaluation
  The Director of Community Services and the Staff Development Manager are currently undertaking an evaluation of the Supervision & Appraisal system.
  It was said that the new Supervision Format has been in use for operational staff and some office based staff for some time and now needs to be evaluated.
  The evaluation process will include general feedback from managers and staff who have conducted or received supervision and/or appraisal using the latest system. Feedback can be given via email and The Director of Community Services and the Staff Development Manager will be meeting individually with some staff and managers as part of the evaluation.
  It was asked if supervision sessions can be less frequent. Our Contract with the L.A. requires bi-monthly supervisions; however Domiciliary Care regulations only require quarterly staff supervisions. The Director of Community Services said that
  any change of frequency would need to be agreed with Contract and Monitoring.
  
• Information from Admin, Personnel and Payroll
  Admin Department
  It has been agreed that no diaries will be issued to schemes next year. Following enquiries by the Contract Managers, it was found that they were not really used by staff so are not needed.
  N.B. Service Diaries will be issued as normal.
  The day that mail is sent out to schemes from the Central Office at Walter Road has changed. Instead of a Friday mail will be sent to schemes on a Tuesday. This is because more staff are in the office for training etc on a Monday and Tuesday and therefore will be able to pick up the mail from their mailboxes to save on postage.
  All staff should be reminded to check the scheme trays for mail when visiting the office.
• Personnel and Payroll Issues
  • Holiday Time sheets are to be used for recording all hours worked on Service User Holidays. The new format has been emailed to all schemes. Copies are also available via Paul Sheldon.
  • Basic information on Time sheets is still causing problems; eg Pay numbers and full names not entered; columns not adding up; Bank Holidays not entered on time sheets.
  Payroll needed to contact over one third of all schemes this month due to errors on time sheets.
  • Pay queries are to be addressed through *Pay query forms giving as much information and detail as possible. (Payroll are not able to take queries over the phone)
  Pay queries need to be dealt with immediately they occur. Recent queries have been back-dated up to six months.
  * Gaynor has agreed that pay queries can be sent by email as long as all details are included
  • The Management of Absence policy states that a self cert and return to work interview are to be completed for all sickness (or a return to work only for other absences ie. Unauthorized etc.) These are to be completed even if contracted hours have been worked and the ‘missed’ shift was additional hours. All forms need to be forwarded straight away to payroll.
  • If an employee changes contract with an increase or decrease in hours, the annual leave will need to be adjusted by the Service Co at the scheme. (or Team Co for support workers in Targeted Support Networks)
  A memo and formula for calculating Annual Leave Entitlement was sent to all schemes in December 2009. Please contact Wendy if you need a copy.
  • If an employee is taking a period of unpaid leave they do not accrue annual leave for that period. This needs to be adjusted before they take any unpaid leave.  Please seek advice from the Personnel Department before a staff member takes any unpaid leave. Some employees who have taken over and above their annual leave entitlement have recently been required to pay the amount back.
  • Staff mileage should be claimed on the correct mileage sheets on a monthly basis and not left to accumulate – in one case up to 12 months.
  The Director of Community Services said that Steve Harrison is looking at a system for paying all mileage on a monthly basis for budgeting purposes.
  • Under Health and Safety Regulations, we cannot pay staff their statutory annual leave entitlement. Staff must take regular annual leave breaks.
  A lively discussion followed.
  Some staff on low contracts work regular additional hours, and are reluctant to take annual leave breaks based on their actual contracted hours.
  The Director of Community Services reminded everyone that as an Organization we are required to ensure that staff take their annual leave; the first thing that the Health & Safety Executive would look for following a reportable incident is how many hours staff have been working and when they last had time off from work.
  The Director of Community Services also reminded everyone that after extensive discussions between the Operations Department and the Personnel Department in 2004, a memo from The Director of Community Services was distributed agreeing that staff on annual leave can work additional hours on their rest days only.
  However some employees are still using a combination of contracted hours, additional hours and annual leave to make their hours up to 50 per week and are not actually taking time off work and therefore are being ‘paid’ for annual leave that they haven’t actually taken. The situation is being closely monitored by personnel as it contravenes health and safety legislation and staff may be asked to repay any annual leave not actually taken.
  The Director of Community Services said that if this situation continues the practice of working on ‘rest days’ whilst on annual leave will also stop.
  Annual Leave needs to be taken by all staff on a regular basis throughout the year.
  Reminder:- Part time staff who work extra shifts up to 37hours, are paid 'Accrued Holiday Pay' every quarter equivalent to the time off accrued during the leave year based on hours worked in addition to their contract.
  The additional payment is determined by the average weekly additional hours worked as a proportion of full time hours and is paid quarterly. For further information please see the section on Leave Entitlement paragraph B 4 in the Staff Handbook.
  
• Agenda Items from Individual Services
  Excessive Hours – Impact of 50 hour limit.
  At the December Forum, there was a discussion about staff who work over the 50 hour limit in an emergency. There were concerns that the ‘7 day’ window for staff to ‘drop’ a shift is unclear and open to misinterpretation
  The Rota Management Policy now makes it clear that these additional hours can only be authorised by a Contract Manager – usually through On Call, who will also take responsibility for ensuring that staff reduce their hours accordingly. – See relevant section from policy below:-
  Short Notice Situations
  Often via our on call service staff will be asked to cover a shift with very (if any) notice. If the only available staff member has already reached their 50hr week limit it will be the duty of the On Call Contract Manager to authorise the shift and ensure all other options have been explored. The On Call Contract Manager will record this event and in conjunction with the relevant team co-ordinator and contract manager, ensure the staff member will reduce their hours accordingly to 50hrs within the next 7 days.
  Home Care Roster (H.C.R)
  Now that more Service Co’s are using the H.C.R, there are concerns that rotas are taking too long to produce. Also the computer is usually in a public area at the service so it can be difficult to concentrate when there are other distractions around.
  This is of particular concern if payroll is to be linked to HCR.
  A discussion followed with examples given.
  Service Co’s should feedback any problems to Rosanna.
  Other Service Co’s agreed that they had similar concerns at first, but once the teething problems have settled down, it is much easier to produce a rota.
  Everyone was reminded that Shift Record Sheets must be completed by all staff so that they can be referred to and cross referenced when completing time sheets.
  The Director of Community Services said that there are many other benefits to using the software as discussed at the Support Staff Forum: - See minutes dated 16th March 2010.
  It was decided to keep H.C.R. on the agenda for the next Forum so that we can discuss any continuing concerns once everyone has had more practice at using the software.
  Service User Holidays
  Some Service Co’s still feel that the issue of who accompanies service users on holiday is unclear.
  The Director of Community Services confirmed the discussion at the previous Forum:- although there is nothing in policy to say that a Service Co cannot go on a Service User holiday, Service Co’s need to be mindful of their management responsibility to the scheme, to Service Users who are staying home and the extra salary cost to the Service User going on the holiday. The ultimate decision rests with the Contract Manager who has the legal responsibility for the Service.
  Next Meeting
  Unfortunately two Networks were not represented today as the Service Co’s in those Networks were commitment to attending their own Network meetings.
  Wendy will ask the Contract Managers for their Network Meeting dates for July so the date of the next Forum may change to enable everyone to attend.
  

Service Coordinator Forum 12th December 2009

• Room 101 – Excessive Paperwork
  The Head of Community Solutions outlined the principles behind the concept of ‘Room 101’ in relation to the paperwork generated by the Consortium.
  Staff often complain that there is too much paperwork in the Consortium. It is time consuming and takes staff away from supporting service users.
  However after twenty years it can be difficult to change and to identify what is surplus to requirements and what is essential.
  

• A discussion followed.
  Everyone agreed that although most recordings are beneficial, in some instances there could be room for change. For example,
  • The layout of files could be simplified.
  • Do we need so many files? 5 per service user – could be reduced to 2.
  • Do all files need to be on ‘hard copy’? For example, could files be stored on individual laptops or ‘net books’.
  • Printing off stuff to put in a file is wasteful!
  There was a discussion about Support Plans. For example, do they need to be recorded daily?
  It was agreed that individual Support Plans work well but there were conflicting views about how they are introduced to staff working with service users for the first time, especially under targeted support. Do staff have time to read them or do more experienced staff/support co’s show staff what’s required instead.
  There is inconsistency across the Networks; do we need to keep all the support plans?
  We need to be honest about why we are keeping/recording some stuff so how do we decide to go about it?
  Ideas put forward included:-
  • Get more front line staff involved.
  • Have discussions at the next Team Meetings.
  • Bring ideas back to the next Forum (Staff and Service Co)
  • Identify what we are contractually required to record
  • Instead of ‘what can we get rid of’ – ‘what can we keep?’; examples of duplication were given.
  • Are some files ‘tokenistic’
  • Could more information be stored on line – eg the White files?
  Everyone agreed to look for volunteers to feed back to the Forum and ensure that the nominated volunteer is able to attend.
  An e-mail address for ‘Room 101’ will be set up so that staff can send in their suggestions.

  Everyone was thanked for their input.

• Christmas/New Year Time Sheet Arrangements.
  The Payroll Coordinator joined the meeting to talk about recording additional payments for Christmas and New Year’s Eve this year.
  The Payroll Coordinator went through the process. Everyone was reminded that this year, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are in a different pay week to Boxing Day.
  Everyone was reminded that the last day for sending in the December time sheets is Tuesday 5th January 2010.
  All additional payments for Christmas and the New Year will be included in January’s pay.
  The Payroll Coordinator also asked that: Pay numbers and names (not nicknames) are entered in full on timesheets. This is still causing problems for payroll as we have a number of employees with the same or similar names.
  Please can everyone use the latest version of ‘Back to Work ‘and ‘Self Certification’ sickness recording forms. The correct format can be found in the Absence Policy. Any other versions should be destroyed.  Please can pay queries be addressed through ‘Pay query’ forms giving as much information and detail as possible.
  It was agreed that the electronic timesheets are working well for those who are using them.
  As there were no more payroll issues, The Payroll Coordinator left the meeting.
  Please can everyone use the latest version of ‘Back to Work ‘and ‘Self Certification’ sickness recording forms. The correct format can be found in the Absence Policy. Any other versions should be destroyed.
  

• Agenda Items from Individual Services: Holiday Costing Forms and Holiday Time Sheets - Update: The new format for recording additional hours worked by staff supporting service users on holiday has now been approved by the Supporting Staff Sub-Group and is ready for circulation. A copy of the new Holiday Timesheet and information on how it should be completed will be circulated to all services by the Payroll and Personnel Department.
  An example of the Timesheet will be attached to the email version of these minutes.  There will be an update on the new Holiday Costing form at the next Forum. The new format should be ready for use in the New Year.
  

• PBM Training for Staff - (Positive Behavioral Management): It was asked if staff will be trained in PBM – this is particularly relevant in some services where service users need blood tests. Whilst the issue remains unresolved, one service user has been waiting months for a regular blood test. At the moment, The Consortium is looking at the differences between PBM and Management of Aggression (Studio Three) and the implications of any change. The Local Authority is liaising with the Specialist Behaviors Team (SBT) from the Health Authority and CLC Clinical Team about the issues of taking bloods safely. The Contract Manager and the Care Manager should be kept informed about any problems arranging blood tests for Service Users.
  

• Swine Flu Pandemic Update. We are still monitoring staff sickness across the Networks so Managers should continue to email details of any absences to Wendy including when staff return to work. This information has been useful in identifying potential staffing problems in individual Networks. The Operations Manager and the Contract Managers have a regular ‘pandemic’ update meeting every Wednesday morning. We are keeping a record of Service Users and staff who have been vaccinated against swine flu. This information should also be forwarded to the Community Services Officer, including those service users and staff who have chosen not to be vaccinated. Some service users have been told that they are not eligible and have been refused the vaccination by their GP.
  Staff take-up of the vaccination has been slow. A discussion followed.
  Some staff have reported an adverse reaction to the ‘jab’. It remains a controversial subject with opinion split over the benefits of vaccination.
  

• Excessive Hours – Impact of 50 hour limit. Since the number of hours staff can work per week has been limited to 50 hours, it was suggested that we should recruit more Relief Support Workers and Support Co ‘floaters’. Finding suitable staff cover at short notice is a problem, especially towards the end of the week when the only available staff are already up to the 50 hour limit. 
  A lively discussion followed – including some of the following points:-
  If staff are available to work additional hours in an emergency, they will need to drop a shift later in the week. (Within a maximum of 7 days).
  • The On Call Team must inform the relevant Contract Manager asap if staff need to drop hours later in the week.
  • There are concerns that the ‘7 day’ window for dropping a shift is unclear and is open to misinterpretation
  • Staff on smaller contracts are picking up more overtime.
  • Staff who are working additional hours are not being paid more than 50 hours in a week.
  • Any staffing problems are recorded by ‘On call’ and are discussed with Alice at the weekly On Call hand Over Meeting.
  

Service Coordinator Forum 9th September 2009

The Director of Community Services welcomed everyone to the meeting and introduced GS, CSSIW Inspector and PT, Personnel and Administration Manager.

• Reporting of Accidents - Everyone was reminded about the importance of reporting accidents at work promptly and accurately by completing the necessary paperwork and sending it to the Office as soon as possible after the accident occurs. White and Pink copies to Personnel at the Office, Yellow copy kept at scheme.
  It is important that part 4 of the form is completed. If an injury caused by an accident at work results in more than three days absence from work it must be reported to the Health and Safety Executive.
  A second form in the Accident book must also be completed in line with Health and Safety legal requirements. The same system applies to Service Users involved in accidents at home. Accidents involving Service Users are also recorded separately in the Service User’s file and a Regulation 26 form is sent to the CSSIW
  
• Wheelchair Accidents - There was a discussion about the risks involved for service users who use wheelchairs whilst travelling, for example by taxi, Social Service Transport or in their own adapted vehicle.
  Risk assessments and support plans should be in place for all journeys and should be reviewed regularly.
  Service Co’s confirmed that daily checks for wheelchairs and weekly vehicle checks are carried out at the services.
  Day Services will have their own risk assessments in place when transporting service users to and from their home and the Day Service.
  There were some concerns about staff responsibility for service users’ safety when being transported in a wheelchair in an adapted Taxi. Although taxi drivers have some responsibility for the safety of their passengers under the Road Traffic Act, CLC staff still have a duty of care to ensure that service users are safely secured whilst travelling in the taxi. This will be clarified for staff.
  

• Excessive Hours - The number of hours staff can work per week will reduce to 50 hours from October. A reminder by memo will be included with the September payslips.
  The reduction to 57 hours has, on the whole, been successful. There were a few problems at first but things have settled down now although the 50 hour limit may present more problems.
  We have fewer vacancies at the moment and recruitment is on-going. Peter said there are 625 staff in post.
  A discussion followed and the following points were made:-
  · Overtime is being shared out more equally between staff.
  · Some staff don’t want the overtime
  It was asked if the 50 hour limit would be suspended in the event of a flu pandemic.
  Tthe situation would be reviewed centrally if and when a pandemic happens.
  Minimum staffing levels will need to be reviewed to ensure service users’ safety at all times.
  Since August, Operations get together weekly for a ‘pandemic update’.  A record of sickness across the Consortium is being kept so that any potential problem areas can be identified at the meeting.
  Please let the CSO know as and when staff call in sick, whatever the reason - also the date they return to work please -so that the information is as up to date as possible.
  PT told us that in the event of a ‘full blown’ flu pandemic, some of the requirements around sick papers may be relaxed by the Government nationally. At the moment, staff still require a Sick Paper from a Doctor if they are away from work for more than seven days.
  

• Agenda Items from Individual Services - A Service Co wanted to know whether staff who have reached the 50 hour limit are obligated as a ‘duty of care’ to stay on at the end of a shift when problems occur even though they will not get paid for any additional time worked over the 50 hours.

  W all have a ‘duty of care’ to protect Service Users which means we cannot leave service users at risk and staff should contact the On Call Service as soon as the problem arises.
  It should be made clear to the On Call if staff are unable to stay at the scheme even for a short while so that arrangements can be made to get someone there as soon as possible. On no account should Service Users be left unsupported.
  In this situation, if staff stay on at the end of a shift, any extra time worked over the 50 hour limit will be taken back later in the week. (Within seven working days.)
  GS said that the CSSIW view is that there are TWO levels of Duty of Care, one for staff and one for the the Organisation. Service Users left unsupported for whatever reason would become a PoVA issue.
  It was also asked if companies have a legal responsibility to pay staff for ‘all hours worked’ regardless of any internal policies.

  No.  This is because the company has alternative arrangements in place. Staff are able to take back the extra hours worked by dropping rota’d hours later in the week. (Within seven working days)
  Everyone was reminded that UNISON has been involved throughout this process.

  GS added that the Working Time Directive is European legislation. The remit of the CSSIW is to ensure safe working practices. For the last two to three years, The Inspectors have had concerns with CLC over the potential problem of staff not being competent due to having worked excessive hours.

• Payment to Staff re-deployed by On Call - It was confirmed that in an emergency, if a Support co-ordinator in a targeted support Network is asked by the On Call Service to move to another location whilst already working, to cover a support worker shift in a Non-targeted support Network they will still be paid at their original Support Co-ordinator rate.
  
• Service Co Pensions Update - The Personnel and Administration Manager is planning to attend the next Forum to give an update on pensions.
  
• Payroll Issues - The Payroll Coordinator will attend the December Forum to confirm Time Sheet arrangements for Christmas and the New Year 2009/10
  

• Service User Holidays -  Accompanying Service Users on holiday is still an issue for some Service Co’s who feel that there are different rules for different managers.
  It was confirmed at the discussion at the previous Forum:- although there is nothing in policy to say that a Service Co cannot go on a Service User holiday, Service Co’s need to be mindful of their management responsibility to the scheme, to Service Users who are staying home and the extra salary cost to the Service User going on the holiday. Iit would be very difficult to have a ‘blanket policy’ on this issue as each situation should be considered on an individual basis.
  The ultimate decision rests with the Contract Manager who has the legal responsibility for the Service. However it was agreed that it needs to be clear about how the decision on who should go on the holiday is made.
  The issue will be an agenda item at the monthly Contract Managers’ meeting.
  
• Debit Cards for Schemes - In response to requests from Service Co’s, Steve Harrison has given us the following information:-
  ‘I have had several conversations with the bank regarding this subject but we always return to the same problem that a debit card is issued to one person only. This in turn contravenes our own security protocols as the pin is issued to the single authorised user and once the pin is shared, the bank will absolve themselves of all responsibility.
  Our Finance Policy requires that two signatories are needed in order to complete a transaction through the banking system in order to maintain security, for both our service users and staff alike.  

  The Finance Department said that they have also explored the possibility of using “prepaid” cards; unfortunately they come with the same pitfalls as debit cards and would be considerably more expensive as there is a charge for every transaction.   Therefore I regret that at this time I can no longer explore this as a viable means of completing transactions on an operational basis.  Please accept my apologies for the time this has taken but we have been exploring this subject for some time, however should a viable solution present itself in the future then I will be happy to review the situation.’ SH Finance Manager.

• Recruitment - There are concerns that in some schemes, service users and relatives are no longer involved in the recruitment process; in particular when recruiting targeted support workers who are required to work over more than one service.
  A discussion followed.
  It was said that service users should always be involved at the informal stage of interview. It was agreed that it is difficult for candidates to visit all schemes involved under targeted support.
  There are plans to review the recruitment policy to include greater participation of Service Users.
  
• Level 2 in IT Skills – (ITQ) - Service Co’s wanting to access this training should speak to the Training Department on an individual basis. This training is only available to Service Co’s. However, those Service Co’s who have already taken part said that they did not find it particularly useful for the needs of the Consortium. The Training department is reviewing this at the moment.
  A member of training will be attending the Staff forum to talk about IT training for support staff.
  
• Ink Cartridges - There are still some concerns around the replacement ink cartridges obtained from The Office. They do not last very long and are of a poor quality.
  The Admin department needs to be made aware of any problems so that they can address them with the supplier.
• QSMR - It was requested that when the QSMR’s are photocopied and sent back to the schemes that the next quarter’s blank QSMR sheet is also sent with it. Service Co’s can then start filling them in e.g. Team meeting dates, meds tests, supervision dates etc as and when they are conducted instead of looking for the information at the end of the quarter.

  The Admin department does not have a problem with this. A lot of schemes have the QSMR saved on their computer to complete electronically so they can start filling them in at any time. Anyone who would like paper copies sent out early, please ring the admin department at the Office.

• Response Service Update - The Response Service will start on September 21st. The full team is now in place and are completing their training.  There will be two staff on duty every night, based in the Gorseinon Office, ready to respond to calls from the five ‘green’ services taking part in the pilot.
  We will be meeting with the Local Authority in October to look at and plan the next stage involving the ‘amber’ services.
  A discussion followed.
  There is still some confusion about the ‘Green, Amber and Red’ categories – what they mean and what they imply about each service.  The categories will be regularly reviewed as service user needs change.
  
• Time Sheets – Service User Holidays - Although BG was unable to attend the Staff Sub Group meeting in September due to annual leave, she will be part of a working group looking at time sheet arrangements for hours worked by staff when supporting service users on holiday. The group will have their first meeting in October.

• A.O.B -  At a recent training event, support co-ordinators were told that money for gloves and aprons was supplied by the Local Authority so it was asked why some service users pay for these items themselves.
  Under ‘supported living’, service users supported by the City and County of Swansea Local Authority pay for their own hygiene products.
  However at the moment there is still a ‘Hygiene Account’ for Service Users under the Neath and Port Talbot Local Authority.
  

Service Co-ordinator Forum - 10th June 2009

Chris welcomed everyone to the meeting and was pleased at the response this time. The future of the Forum is on the agenda.

Previous minutes and Matters Arising

Service Co Pensions Update:
Chris said there was no further information on pensions at the moment.

The Pension update will be kept on the Service Co Forum agenda.

Chwarae Teg Working Group
Purchasing Additional Annual Leave
The option to purchase additional annual leave was introduced in April. Personnel have told us that the scheme has proved popular with a wide selection of staff requesting application forms.

Service Co’s said there were no problems so far.

Free Eye Tests for Display Screen Equipment Users (DSE User)
Some Service Co’s said that they are still unable to claim back the cost of eye tests.
Following the last Forum, Peter Thomas told us that the DSE Regulations defines a ‘user’ as someone who uses a computer for ‘continuous or near continuous use in spells of an hour or more at a time’ on a ‘more or less daily’ basis and ‘transfers information quickly to or from the display screen’.

Many Service Co’s feel that they now meet these criteria as they increasingly work on line e.g. Time sheets, QSMR, support plans, rota software etc.

A discussion followed. Chris said she will raise the matter with Senior Managers.
Meanwhile, if anyone feels that their duties satisfy the above definition, they should speak to their line manager about determining their entitlement to paid eye tests.

Staff Sub-Group
Chris asked for a volunteer to represent Service Co’s at the Staff Sub Group.
Barbara Genery volunteered.

Police response to Incidents
Following a recent incident at night at one of our schemes involving damage to the property by unknown intruders, the Service Co wanted to pass on some useful information. When the Police were called the next day, the police officer advise them to let all schemes know that they should be contacted immediately, however small the incident. If staff explain there are vulnerable adults in the house, the police will attend straight away.

A discussion followed. Service Co’s have had different experiences when involving the Police. Some said that the Police responded quickly whilst others had little or no response.

Everyone was reminded that if necessary, the Police can be asked to attend by the Call Centre staff via the Intruder Alarm.

Response Service
Chris updated everyone on the plans to pilot a night time response service in the Gorseinon area. Recruitment for the team has begun. Training has been arranged for the end of July and the Service is scheduled to ‘go live’ in September. The pilot will run until March 2010.

There were no questions about the service. Chris reminded everyone about how it will work. Schemes will be graded into Red, Amber or Green services and two wakeful staff will be based at the Gorseinon office ready to respond as required.

Phil McFarlane is setting up the service and he and Peter Russell have been visiting schemes in the Pilot area to assess the need for assistive technology.

Chris said that there had been some interest to the first advert for response workers and the standard of applicants was good. However there were not enough applicants so the post has been re-advertised. We have to implement the Pilot in September because if it doesn’t work, we will need to look at other ways of supporting people at night.

The posts are temporary and Chris asked Service Co’s to encourage staff who prefer working nights to apply.

Excessive Hours Action Plan
All staff have received notification of the Excessive hours action plan with the February pay slips.

A discussion followed. The feedback from Managers has been positive. Chris said that we have tried everything to reduce the number of excessive hours worked. Now we have no choice. The CSSIW will not accept any more excuses and they are saying that there could be a possible direct link between the number of hours staff work in relation to medication errors, complaints etc The target is to get everyone working under 50 hours per week by October 2009.

It was acknowledged that initially this will cause problems; especially for ‘On Call’ but Chris said that the action plan is NOT up for consultation. If staff are asked to work a shift at short notice and it takes them over hours, they will need to drop a shift later in the week. They will NOT be able to take it back as lieu time.

We also need to keep an eye on the hours worked by staff with secondary employment. The hours they work per week in their second job should be monitored to ensure they are not working excessively. 

Next Meeting: 9th September, 2009 - 10 until 12 noon, Resource Room.

Service Co-ordinator Forum - 4th March 2009

Previous Minutes and Matters arising

Christmas and New Year Timesheets

There was an improvement in the completion of time sheets this year with less confusion by separating Christmas and New Year Bank Holidays. However the triple time payments for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day continue to cause some problems.

Any constructive comments or suggestions before next Christmas would be welcome.

Service Co Pensions Update: The employer contribution has been increased to 7% as agreed and backdated to October 2008.

The additional contributions for October to January were included on the February payslip and the increased employer contribution has been implemented from February 2009.

The Pension update will be kept on the Service Co Forum agenda.

Chwarae Teg Working Group – Update: One of the projects undertaken by the working group was to look at purchasing additional annual leave. As a result, from 1st April 2009 employees will have the option to purchase an additional one week’s contracted hours to add to their existing leave entitlement and to be taken in line with existing leave policy.

A discussion followed. Wendy and Chris explained some of the principles and procedure.

It was suggested that a copy of the Purchasing Additional Annual Leave document should be circulated to staff and managers before April.

Since the meeting, Wendy has e-mailed the document to all schemes and more information will be circulated to all staff via a memo with the March pay slips.

The Working from Home policy will take a little longer but is still on track.

Re-Distribution of Makro Cards: Sadly this is no longer an issue as Makro has announced its intention to close the Swansea store in May 09.

New Agenda Items

Payment of Additional Hours for Holidays: Invoices for additional hours used for holidays or outings are sent out directly to the individual Service Users by the Finance Department. Everyone was reminded that if a Service User chooses to pay for the additional hours from their savings account, the Service Co-ordinator needs to contact the Tenant Services department to request the transfer of funds quoting the Invoice Number. All other payments should be made by cheque to the Finance Department as soon as possible after the receipt of the invoice.

Please note that no payments should be made to the Finance Department before the invoice is sent out.

Working Whilst on Annual Leave: After extensive discussions between the Operations Department and the Personnel Department in 2004, a memo from Chris was distributed agreeing that staff on annual leave can work additional hours on their rest days and that the maximum combination of additional hours and annual leave must not exceed 50hours.

However some employees are using a combination of contracted hours, additional hours and their annual leave to make their hours up to 50 per week on a regular basis and the situation is being closely monitored by personnel as it contravenes health and safety legislation if staff are not actually taking time off work.
A discussion followed.

Chris said that if this situation continues we may have to stop the practice of working whilst on annual leave completely.

Free Eye Tests for Display Screen Equipment Users (DSE User): One Service Co has said that she has recently been made aware that staff can be reimbursed for eye tests if they are designated as a DSE user and at present Service Co’s are not included in this category. However with the increased use of computers, in particular around the area of rotas and the Home Care Rota system, might they be considered in the future?

Peter Thomas has told us that the DSE Regulations defines a ‘user’ as someone who uses a computer for ‘continuous or near continuous use in spells of an hour or more at a time’ on a ‘more or less daily’ basis and ‘transfers information quickly to or from the display screen’.

If anyone feels that their duties satisfy this definition, they should speak to their line manager about determining their entitlement to paid eye tests.

Excessive Hours Action Plan: All staff have received notification of the Excessive hours action plan with the February pay slips.

A discussion followed. The feedback from Managers has been positive. Chris said that we have tried everything to reduce the number of excessive hours worked. Now we have no choice. The CSSIW will not accept any more excuses and they are saying that there could be a possible direct link between the number of hours staff work in relation to medication errors, complaints etc The target is to get everyone working under 50 hours per week by October 2009.

It was acknowledged that initially this will cause problems; especially for ‘On Call’ but Chris said that the action plan is NOT up for consultation. If staff are asked to work a shift at short notice and it takes them over hours, they will need to drop a shift later in the week. They will NOT be able to take it back as lieu time.

We also need to keep an eye on the hours worked by staff with secondary employment. The hours they work per week in their second job should be monitored to ensure they are not working excessively. 

The combined contractual hours should not exceed 37 per week.  (See memo CLC1078 from Peter Thomas dated 12th March 2009).

Sleep-in Duties: Following some publicity around recent court cases, Service Co’s asked what will happen to ‘sleep-in’ duties in the future. There are lots of rumours amongst support staff at the moment.

Chris said that due to the working time directive we have had to re think how we can support people at night.

The length of shifts and ‘sleep in’ duties are the main issue. ‘Sleep-ins’ are not paid at an hourly rate and we are unlikely to be exempt for much longer. To convert ‘sleep-ins’ to wakeful shifts has obvious cost implications for the Local Authority so they have asked us to look at other ways of supporting service user at night. Chris said that we are looking at several options.

A discussion followed. It was agreed that any change will be difficult to introduce to service users and relatives.

Pay Award April 2008 to March 2009: Following arbitration with ACAS, the final pay award for April 08/09 is 2.75%. An interim pay award of 2.45% was implemented in November 08 and backdated to April 08.

The extra 0.3% will be paid in the March salary – backdated to April.

Future Forum Meetings: Due to the low turnout today, Chris asked what should happen to these meetings in the future. Those present felt that they wanted the meetings to continue as it was an opportunity to hear about future plans and developments in the Consortium first hand and to express views and opinions.

Chris also valued the Forum as a way of keeping in touch with how everyone is feeling etc.  It was acknowledged that we all have busy schedules – including Chris!

However the dates of these meetings are well publicised for the year and despite a reminder by email from Wendy, only nine Service Co’s sent apologies for to-day. If more managers had replied the meeting could have been rescheduled.

It was decide that the June Forum will go ahead as planned but next time Wendy will be asking for definite numbers and Chris said she would like any apologies for non-attendance to be explained. eg annual leave, other appointments etc.  We can then decide on the future of the Forum based on the turnout and reasons for non-attendance.

Next Forum: Wednesday 10th June 2009 @ 10.00 a.m. in the Resource Room

Service Co-ordinator Forum - 4th September 2008

Pensions

The Personnel Manager joined the meeting as arranged at the June Forum to present the Consortium’s proposed pension provision for Service Co-ordinators.

The proposal is to increase the employer contribution to the Service Co-ordinator pension to 7% with effect from 1st October 2008.

The Consortium is committed to looking at further increases from April 09 and this will be looked at during the budget planning for 2009/10. A discussion followed.

The future of The Final Salary Pension Scheme was clarified. Due to the way pensions are set up and funded, it is not possible to compare the two pension schemes. It was suggested that we ask Mark Titley, Independent Financial Advisor to attend a meeting either with the whole group or the nominated Service Co-ordinators.

What Happens Next?

• A meeting to be arranged with Mark Titley.
• Proposal to be discussed at the JCC meeting on 15th October.
• Peter’s presentation to be emailed to all Service Co’s and Registered Managers.
• Stewart to contact other Service Co’s in view of to-day’s turnout.
• Feedback to be given by the end of September to the following Service Co’s who agreed to be the point of contact in each Network.:-
• Network 1 = Christian Cowap, Network 2 = Wayne Wilcox, Network 3 = Rachel Matthews, Network 4 = Lynda Phelps, Network 5 = Amanda Rees, Network 6 = Dawn Day, Network 7 = Marianne Bevans

Any proposal needs to be submitted to the Management Board for approval so we need a response in order to submit the proposal to the Board. The additional employer contribution can be backdated to October if approved.

The Department of Works and Pensions Website is a useful source of information.

Pay Award

There is no news yet on this years pay award – discussions with Unison are ongoing. Staff can look at the UNISON website for more up to date information. There is no news yet on this years pay award – discussions with Unison are ongoing. Staff can look at the UNISON website for more up to date information.

Electronic Timesheets

The group were shown an Electronic Timesheet by the Payroll Co-ordinator that is currently being used by the Team Co’s in Networks 2, 5 and 6 for support workers under Targeted Support. It can be emailed to the scheme and if requested, the Payroll Co can pre-enter staff names, pay numbers etc. She is also happy to give individual training sessions.

If anyone would like to try it, please let the Payroll Co know. Everyone was asked to spread the word to other Service Co’s who did not attend to-day’s Forum.

Since the Forum, at least seven Service Co’s have started using the Electronic Timesheets.

Previous Minutes and Matters Arising

Christmas Pay arrangements

As a result of the questionnaire asking staff to express their preference about Christmas pay arrangements, the December salary will now be paid on 31st December or the last working day before then.

Debit Cards

The inability to book events etc by credit card continues to cause problems. The Director (AO) told us that the Finance Manager, is still looking for safe solutions. We will invite him to the December Forum to discuss this issue.

Holiday Costing Forms

The redrafted form is almost ready. It will then be circulated for comments and feedback.

Targeted Support Update

The implementation of Targeted Support in Networks 4 & 7 has been temporarily postponed for at least three months.

Update on New Schemes

Two new schemes, one at Grovesend, Gorseinon and one at Clayton Court, Pontardulais opened in August.

The new bungalow for two service users at the Fairfield Court site in Llansamlet should be ready for handover by mid October. Recruitment has started to take place.

Re-Distribution of Makro Cards

At the December 07 Forum, it was suggested that all Makro cards be handed back and reallocated more fairly and at the time.

The Business Manager has spoken with Macro again and the new limit is 12 cards per company. So if he changed the company name over to CLC they would only issue 12 cards. As it is they have cancelled a lot of cards of people that haven’t used them for a while. We still have about 40 people with active cards (which is way over the limit). The Director and the Community Services Officer agreed to contact Makro again to try to resolve the issue.

AOB

Overtime Protocol – Targeted Support

It was asked if there are plans to change the way overtime shifts are allocated especially under targeted support. There have been some issues recently around who should cover certain shifts, and if support co’s can work additional hours as a support worker.

There are no changes planned at the moment. Each Network should have a protocol for offering and allocating overtime based on the needs of the service users.

The subject was also raised by support staff at their Forum earlier to-day.

Bank Mandates – Targeted Support Schemes

One Service Co pointed out that since targeted support has been introduced, the allocated support worker for independent services may not be on the relevant bank mandate and is therefore unable to cash cheques. The Service Co has had to leave a meeting to sign cheques.

It was acknowledged that the more names on the mandate the higher the risk to security. A discussion followed.

The need to record this information is part of the minimum standards for Domiciliary Agencies and eventually will be recorded on line as will Service User records. However we are not ready to do this yet as we will need a bigger ‘server’.

The Director suggested that Service Co’s ‘time’ supervision sessions, performance assessments etc so that the evidence can be incorporated into the formula for assessing management hours. She also told us that there is a review of job descriptions in progress which involves mapping out different tasks and includes the roles of Contract Managers, Team Co’s, Service Co’s, Housing Co’s, Support Co’s and Support Workers.

Feedback on Staff Forum

There was a brief discussion around some of the issues brought to the Staff Forum this morning, mostly around rotas and the rota software.

Time Management

It was asked if Service Co’s will be given more management time for supervisions, Code of Practice performance assessments etc.

There were also concerns around planning staff supervision during a working day.

NEXT FORUM

• Tuesday 9th December 2008. - 1.30pm to 3.30pm - Training Room

Service Co-ordinators Forum Minutes

ACTIONS AGREED IN SERVICE CO-ORDINATORS FORUM MINUTES FROM 2008

Service Coordinators Meeting held on 11th March 2008

Unison Learning Representatives (ULR)

A short presentation was given on the role of Union Learning Representative. A discussion followed.

The scheme is a partnership with the Welsh Assembly Government, C.L.C. and Unison with an aim to enhance basic learning skills and lifelong learning and to raise awareness of learning opportunities for both union and non-union staff.

There are three ULR’s in the Consortium at the moment and Unison is keen to recruit more. All ULR’s must be members of Unison and will attend a five day training course provided by the union.

There will be more information in a special edition of the Consortium newsletter at the end of May.

Meanwhile ULR’s will promote the service via Forums, Network meetings and on the Consortium Website. A copy of the presentation will be emailed to all schemes with these minutes.

The HSC would like to come back and tell us how it’s going later in the year.

Unkind People and What to do About Them

Tenants’ Lives group members gave a presentation on the work they have completed about how to deal with unkind people.

They have also produced information leaflets for service users and staff. The leaflets will be circulated by email with these minutes.

Christmas and New Year time Sheets

At the last Forum in December, there were no questions for Payroll about the completion of the Christmas time sheets and everyone agreed that the instructions issued were easy to follow.

However once the December 07 timesheets were in, Payroll said that we are still experiencing the same errors in recording the enhanced payments and Bank Holidays so the Payroll Co-ordinator joined us to look at ways of resolving the problems.

Before leaving the Forum, the Payroll Co-ordinator wanted to remind everyone to sign their monthly timesheets please.

Previous Minutes and Matters Arising

Holiday Costing Forms/Procedure

Work is being carried out on the reviewing and updating of the Holiday Costing forms.

Debit Cards

The Finance Manager will be invited to attend our June Forum to discuss this issue.

Pensions

It was acknowledged that we need an update on the Consortium plans for the future overall terms and conditions for Managers, including pensions (see Forum Minutes 12th September 2007)

A general discussion on the importance of Pensions followed. Some managers said that Mark Titley, OPUS Senior Consultant, has been very helpful to anyone wanting advice on individual pensions. Mark can be contacted on 02920 546366.

Mileage

At the last Forum it was asked if the mileage allowance can go up from 37p to 40p a mile.

Unfortunately mileage allowance cannot be reviewed at this time due to budget implications.

New Recording System

Training on the new recording systems (Black files) is complete. The files are being prepared by Admin and will be distributed to all schemes soon.

A.O.B

Targeted Support Update

Targeted Support started in Network 2 on 1st March and is going well. The ‘black files’ work well.

The Service Users seem unaffected by the change and in are enjoying seeing new faces supporting them. The anxiety of staff has also decreased and support workers are enjoying their new role. However there is a lot of concern about the amount of outstanding annual leave to be taken in the Network before April.

There was a lot of interest in recent Support Co-ordinator vacancies advertised in Networks 5 & 6.

Staff in Network 1 are still anxious about the changes. It was suggested that other staff could talk about the ‘positives’ of targeted support at Forums or consultation meetings.

Swansea are still keen for us to continue with the Pilot and we are learning more day by day.

Update on New Schemes

Eight service users have now moved in to two new schemes.

One scheme is still under development which is specialising in Autism although things are moving slower than planned. Recruitment for this scheme has now started. Interviews for the Service Co post will take place at the beginning of May.

Work has now begun on the new bungalow for two service users.

Contents Insurance

Some managers said they have experienced difficulties getting through to the new Insurance Company whilst others said they have had no problem. Tthe Housing Support Co-ordinators are responsible for ensuring this task is done so they need to be kept informed of any problems. It was acknowledged that some Housing Co’s have been very helpful so far.

The change was made because as service users accumulate more possessions they need a decent insurance policy. The group policy isn’t very useful now.

• NEXT FORUM - Tuesday 10th June 2008 - 1.30pm to 3.30pm - Walter Road, Training Room
• Other dates for 2008 are Thursday 4th September and Tuesday 9th December 2008. All from1.30pm to 3.30pm

Service Coordinators Meeting held on 12th December 2007

Before the start of today’s meeting, everyone expressed their sadness to hear of the unexpected death of Glenn Morgan following a short illness.

Glenn was a well liked and well respected colleague and a regular and active attendee of the Forum. He will be sorely missed.

Time Sheet arrangements for Christmas & New Year

Everyone has received the memos from the Personnel & Payroll Department giving details of Bank Holiday payments for Christmas and the New Year and the completion of the December time sheets and additional payment sheet.

The Payroll Co-ordinator, asked if anyone had any queries about the timesheet arrangements or has suggestions for simplifying the instruction sheet as the percentage of errors last year was still quite high.

There were no questions and everyone agreed that the instructions issued were easy to follow.

Since receiving December 07 time sheets, Payroll have told us that we are still experiencing the same errors in recording the enhanced payments and Bank Holidays. We have invited the Payroll Co-ordinator to the next Forum in March to look at ways of resolving the problems. All suggestions welcome!

Previous Minutes and Matters Arising

Bank Holiday Lieu Hours

At the last meeting, there was a general discussion about lieu time and annual leave.

When an employee is sick at the time of a Bank Holiday then the sickness absence will override any underlying entitlement. In short if someone is sick when a Bank Holiday occurs then they are not able to work and therefore not entitled to any lieu time for the Bank Holiday.

E.A.P (Employee Assistance Programme)

In September, Mark Saunders from Worklife Support gave a presentation on the Employee Assistance Programme.

As we approach the first anniversary of the tragic death of our colleague last December and more recently the sad news about Glenn, an email has been sent to everyone reminding them that if anyone needs any support to help them with any personal difficulties they can access our Employee Assistance Programme on a freephone number 0800 371 540. Telephone counseling is available 24 hours each day and 365 days a year. The service is also available to the immediate family members of staff.

We also have unlimited access to a NEW online resource which provides FREE information and advice on a wide range of topics, work related or personal. To access this new service, go to: www.worklifesupport.com/onlinesupport

For access to this please contact the Consortium office.

Pay Award

The Local Government Services Pay claim for 2007 has now been settled at 2.475% with effect from 1st April 2007

All staff received the increased rates of pay plus pay arrears from April in the November salary.

Mobile Phones

Following on from the September Forum, Service Co-ordinators can be reimbursed for the cost of calls made from personal mobile phones for work purposes. However we would need to look at other solutions if Service Co-ordinators are having to use their own phones on a regular basis. A ‘Request for Funds’ form, countersigned by your Contract Manager, should be used to make a claim.

Staff to use the vehicle mobile phones whenever possible.

Holiday Costing Forms/Procedure

The need to review and update the Holiday Costing forms was discussed at the September Forum.

Debit Cards

In response to previous requests from Service Co-ordinators, the Finance Manager issued the following statement :-

‘At this time we have no plans to introduce a debit card system in to the Consortium Finance Policy and Procedures. It may be something we look at on a longer term but currently we believe it will cause too many security risks within our framework’

Many Service Co-ordinators feel we now need to reconsider the above policy. Not only are Service Users unable to book tickets or order from the internet, many banks, utility or phone companies require credit checks before setting up accounts etc

We need to look at ways that won’t cause problems with security, possibly with a ‘pay as you go’ account. We could also liaise with other similar agencies to find out what they do.

We will ask the Finance Manager to come to a Forum later this year to discuss the issue.

Targeted Support Update – Swansea Networks

Each Network has a separate Action Plan

• Network 2 - The budget issues in Network 2 have now been resolved and Targeted Support is planned to start at the beginning of March 08. Interviews and training for support co-ordinators has been planned for January.
• Networks 1 & 3 - The consultation process is well underway. There will be a ‘mop up’ session for staff in January with a view to implementing Targeted Support in July.
• Networks 4 & 7 – Following the consultation process, Targeted Support is planned for autumn 2008.
• The whole process should be completed by January 2009.
• Although support hours have already been reviewed in Swansea, there will be a further review.
• This will be a difficult time with a lot of upheaval for staff. It is important that we keep staff positive about the changes.
• Networks 5 & 6 (Neath & Port Talbot) -The good news is that Targeted Support is working well, especially for Service Users.
• Service Co-ordinators from these networks asked when will the ‘pilot’ status end as it seems unlikely that we will drop targeted support in Neath & Port Talbot.

Rota Software

It is still planned to introduce the rota system across all networks so everyone will be familiar with it by the time targeted support is introduced.

The‘Expert Users’ for the Home Care Roster system will be training people on its use. The software system has lots of potential that we were unaware of as initially we did not have any proper tuition. Eventually it is planned to link the system up to payroll.

Pensions

There has been no update on Pensions since the last Forum.

Makro Cards

At previous Forums it was suggested that all existing Makro cards be handed back and reallocated fairly around the schemes. We could inform Makro of the company name change at the same time.

Please see the following reply from the Business Manager

The new limit of Macro cards is 12 cards per company. So if the company name was changed over to CLC they would only issue 12 cards. As it is they have cancelled a lot of cards of people that haven’t used them for a while. Approximately 40 people have active cards (which is way over the limit).

The only other option would be to cancel all cards. If anyone has any other suggestions please bring them to the next meeting for discussion.

Rota Management Policy

Following a review of the Rota Management Policy by the Supporting Staff Sub Group, the recommended time for publishing rotas has been reduced from six weeks to four weeks.

See Policy page 5

Rotas are to be prepared at least 4 weeks in advance. There will be occasions when rotas will need to be amended at shorter notice due to the changes in the service users’ life or other emergencies.

Mileage

It was asked if the mileage allowance can go up from 37p to 40p a mile in line with Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs approved mileage rate.

We will ask the Chief Executive Officer to look at this as there will be budget implications.

Changes to the Transport Policy – Corporate Manslaughter Liability

Due to new legislation coming in to force in April 08, there will be some important changes to our Transport Policy.

Business insurance will be compulsory for all staff who use their vehicle for work purposes even if there are no service users in the car. i.e. attending meetings, quick shopping trip etc

An action plan is needed to check employees’ M.O.T. certificates and driving licences.

At the recent Staff Forum, there were concerns about any extra cost implications for staff. Some companies do not charge to add business cover whilst others do. However, staff should take into account that if they have an accident of any kind whilst at work and make a claim, their insurance companies may not pay out if they do not have business cover.

Service Co's to promote the policy with all staff once it has been published.

See Transport Policy page 5 – ‘Staff Vehicles’

If staff do use their own vehicle, for which the staff member is entitled to be paid mileage expenses by the Consortium, then they must have business use insurance. The Consortium does not pay towards any additional charges made by staff’s insurance company.

Smoking Policy

It had been intended to work towards implementing a total smoking ban throughout the Consortium in January 2008. The Chief Executive Officer has emailed everyone to say that these plans have been put on hold at the moment as we need more time for discussion and further consultation with the Management Committee.

It was acknowledged that a complete ban may be difficult to impose. Staff may start requesting breaks and also non-smokers often complain that they are left unsupported and are ‘carrying’ smokers on shift.

Training during December

Would the Consortium consider a training free or reduced training programme during December as this can be a busy time for staff working at schemes?

The Staff Development Manager will be invited to join a meeting.

Training Programme for 2008

The Training Department do not circulate a training plan anymore. All dates for training courses can now be found on the Consortium website, (currently up to the end of March.) This is constantly updated and managers should check it regularly.

Training on the New recording Systems

Feedback on this training was given and why it is necessary. The intention is to streamline our recording system e.g. all support plans will be kept in one file. This is useful for staff that are not familiar with a scheme, especially as targeted support is introduced.

All Service Co-ordinators will be invited to attend one of the following all day training sessions:-

Tuesday 22nd January 08 or Tuesday 5th February 08 at Gorseinon Workingman’s Club. Brighton Road, Gorseinon.

Both sessions are from 9.30am to 4.30pm.

Update on New Schemes

Eight service users were due to move in to two new schemes on Monday. Unfortunately there has been a slight delay and the move has been put back by a week.

We are developing a new scheme specialising in Autism. The scheme is due to open in April and will accommodate four service users. Recruitment for this scheme will start in the New Year.

A new bungalow for two service users is being planned.

On Call

The Operations Manager thanked thanked everyone for their continued co-operation with the On-Call service especially when staff have to move schemes at short notice. It’s very much appreciated!

Merry Christmas & Prosperous New Year!

Also, the Operations Manager thanked everyone for all their hard work throughout the year and is looking forward to getting together with everyone again at next year’s Forum meetings.

NEXT FORUM

Tuesday 11th March 2008 - 1.30pm to 3.30pm Walter Road 

• Other dates for 2008 are:  Tuesday December 9th 2008. All 1.30pm to 3.30pm

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