Cllr Green said it had been a huge piece of work. He apologised for the way the decision of the 9th December had been communicated. There had been failings and he took responsibility. He said this administration put carers at the centre. He said the contracts had been looked at by a team of council officers to evaluate the standard of quality. He said carers were “at the heart of what we do”. He also said service users were part of what they were doing.
Cllr Moon said there had been a successful tendering process. However providing mental health respite couldn’t be met as the quality was not there. Therefore Fernleigh would remain open until other arrangements were in place. He said the real winners were vulnerable people who could now exercise choice. He referred to the CQC report which had criticised Wirral Council for poor personalisation and also on dignity and respect. He said 30% would have personal budgets by the end of March and that they were moving ahead on dignity, respect and safeguarding. He realised they were working hard. He said they had far, far further to go over embedding and safeguarding. He restated the commitment to users and carers and referred to a three month track record. He said the 322 assessments had been dealt with sympathetically.
Cllr Green thanked officers, carers and Cllr Moon. He checked with the Interim Chief Exec over waving the call in. The Interim Chief Exec agreed. Cllr Foulkes interrupted and said it had been the second time call-in had been waived. Cllr Green said he would take “no lessons from the Labour Party about the Department for Adult Social Services”. He said it could be considered by the Scrutiny Committee and hoped some members would read the reports and how to treat vulnerable people.
