The Cabinet
considered a report of the Managing Director,
Children and Young People, providing an update on Project Skyline
(Greater Manchester proposal to create supply of children’s
homes to increase availability of Children Looked After placements
in the Greater Manchester region for some of the most vulnerable
young people) and approve entering into a Partnership Agreement
with the remaining Local Authorities in Greater Manchester, Greater
Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and NHS Greater Manchester
(NHS GM) for delivery of the project.
The
Partnership Agreement would build on the Memorandum of
Understanding. It would be entered into between the ten local
authorities, GMCA and NHS GM, and would govern the relationship of
the parties, roles and responsibilities, and the sharing of
liabilities. In particular the
Agreement:
- includes the
collaboration principles the parties are committed to (taken from
the MoU that has already been signed);
- sets out governance
arrangements for the project, including terms of reference for the
Skyline Strategy Group;
- details arrangements
regarding the Skyline Homes;
- states GMCA’s
commitment to pay Mobilisation Costs to the procured Care
Providers, as required;
- sets out the role of
GMCA and other parties in managing the procurement process for the
identification of the most economically advantageous Care
Providers;
- establishes
principles regarding the management of each procured Care
Provider’s Agreement, including key decisions (e.g. termination) that the contracting party will
need to bring to the partner authorities for approval;
- reflects the
principle that the local authorities will share costs and
underwrite any losses incurred by GMCA as a
result of its investment in the Skyline homes.
Options/Alternatives considered:
Option One - Recommended Option
- Approval for the
council to negotiate and enter into a Partnership Agreement for
Project Skyline, as detailed in the report.
- Delegate to the Chief
Executive/Director of Children’s Services in consultation
with the portfolio holder for Children and Young People, Treasurer
and Director of Legal Services to agree the terms of the
Partnership Agreement.
- Delegate to the
Director of Legal Services to execute and enter into the
Partnership Agreement and any documentation required to
effect the Partnership Agreement, as
detailed within the report.
Option 2
- Do not enter the Partnership Agreement for Project
Skyline, as detailed in the report. This option was not recommended
as there was already significant pressure on the children’s
placement budget and placement sufficiency is a concern.
RESOLVED – That the Cabinet would consider the
commercially sensitive information contained at Item 18 of the
agenda before making a
decision.