Provision of a Targeted Intensive Support Service

The Council entered into contracts effective from July 2015 for a range of Housing Related Support services with a number of service providers.

In the light of current service demands and performance outcomes from the contracts referred to above the Council believes that there is a requirement for a floating service to support a targeted group of clients across the borough that would be described broadly as having complex or multiple needs and challenges. The qualification criteria for this service are shown in the Service Specification at Appendix A.

Due to the changing and more challenging profile of these clients the Council wants to target specific clients or client groups with the aim of reducing higher care and support costs associated with those clients in Temporary Accommodation who struggle to access permanent accommodation and those threatened with eviction from their current home. The costs whilst not exhaustive would include the costs relating to the Council (social care, homelessness), partner accommodation providers (eviction, void loss), health (hospital and GP admissions, substance misuse services), and criminal justice (Court service, probation, prison service).

The aim of this proposed service is to provide targeted short term, medium to intensive Floating Support for those service users with more complex and multiple needs; the Council does not consider that this can be achieved by a “generic” floating support service.

This service can be provided to service users in addition to other commissioned services and is seen as being complementary not a replacement service. E.g. a service user could benefit from accommodation provided by one organisation plus support from this service.

Referral into this service will be via the Mainstay Gateway system and service providers must therefore be able to access this service and be bound by the terms and conditions of Mainstay e.g. Information Sharing Protocol, Data Protection etc.