St.Helens Council crest

Published Delegated Executive Decisions

Welcome. This system contains information about published delegated executive decisions, including exemptions.

Decision Number: 0196 2014/15

Executive Portfolio:
Early Years and Young People's Services
Decision Number:
0196 2014/15
Exempt / Confidential Item:
No
Ward(s) Affected:
All Wards
Declarations of Interest Received:
None
Title:
Sign-Up to the Expanded Troubled Families Programme
Summary of Decision:
To approve the formal sign-up of St Helens to the national, expanded Troubled Families programme.
Proposed Decision:
To approve the formal sign-up of St Helens to the national, expanded Troubled Families programme, with the Local Authority as the programme lead receiving DCLG grant funding.
Summary of Reason for Decision:
Like all upper-tier authorities across the country, St Helens has been formally invited to roll-out the expanded Troubled Families programme from 1 April 2015, which includes grant funding from DCLG. This will used to support a wider set of families.
Reason for Decision:
The Government launched the Troubled Families programme in April 2012, with three-year grant funding provided to local areas to work with families characterised by poor school attendance, anti-social behaviour/crime, and worklessness. With this programme coming to an end, an expanded programme is being rolled-out nationally to cover the next five-year (2015/16-2019/20) period and reach a wider set of families. Based on positive performance, St Helens has been invited to be part of this expanded programme. The expanded programme aims to reach 400,000 families nationwide over 5 years, which is approximately 3.3 times more than the current programme. Under the current programme, St Helens had a target of 520 families. In the expanded programme, St Helens has been given a provisional target of 1,640 families over 5 years (i.e. 328 per year). The current mix of upfront and ‘Payment by Results’ (PbR) grant funding will continue, albeit at a reduced level. The upfront fee per family will be £1000, whilst the PbR funding will be £800 per family. In addition, there will be a Service Transformation Grant paid to each area to support the collection, analysis and publication of required data. The size of this grant will be proportional to the area’s number of families. DCLG suggest the amount will likely be double the current ‘Troubled Families Coordinator’ grant. Based on the provisional target of 1,640 families, this would translate as: - Upfront: £1000 x 1640 = £1.64m over 5 years (i.e. £328k per year). - PbR: £800 x 1640 = £1.312m over 5 years (i.e. £262.4k per year). [N.B. the PbR income would depend on performance, so cannot be guaranteed, but the incentive is clear.] - Service Transformation Grant: St Helens currently receives £100k per year for the TF Coordinator grant, so is likely to receive £200k per year for the new Service Transformation Grant. - Overall grant funding for 2015/16 is therefore set to be £528k (not including PbR). DCLG are therefore asking St Helens to commit to the following: 1. Achieve results with 1640 families over the planned 5-year life of the expanded programme 2. Engage a proportion (up to 17% = 279) of these families in the first full year of the programme (2015/16) 3. Collect and submit required data to feed into the national evaluation (Family Progress Data, National Impact Study, and Costs Savings Calculator) 4. Provide sufficient coordination and analytical resource to achieve these commitments and help drive local service transformation
Risks Associated with this Decision:
There are risks around performance and information sharing. In terms of performance, the set of families to work with will be complex and challenging, and so achieving successful outcomes (to then secure PbR) cannot be guaranteed in al cases. In terms of information sharing, this is required in order to feed into the national evaluation, and relies upon sourcing personalised data held by partner organisations outside the Council; so protocols will need to be adhered to and consent gained from individuals/families.
Measures to Redress Risk:
The multi-agency Priority Families Governance Board will oversee the strategic direction of the local programme, and have a clear focus on both programme performance and information sharing.
Anti Poverty / Human Rights / Agenda 21 Implications:
The expanded programme aims to improve outcomes for vulnerable and complex families, and has a focus on getting adults into employment and reducing household debt, and therefore alleviating poverty.
Attachments:
Please Contact Paul Simon - Ext 8034 for more details.