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Decision details

Secure Children’s Home for London and Pan-London Commissioning Vehicle

Decision Maker: Cabinet

Decision status: For Determination

Is Key decision?: Yes

Is subject to call in?: Yes

Purpose:

Proposals for the development of a Secure Childrens Home (SCH) for London which includes the creation of a company (referred to as the pan-London vehicle or PLV) that will be owned by London local authorities to oversee the development and running of the new provision. Approval from Cabinet is sought to join the PLV for a five year period from 1st April 2023 to 31st March 2028; the first two years will be a development phase.

Decision:

RESOLVED:

 

1.1That Cabinet agreed that the Council becomes a member of a not-for-profit company, limited by guarantee, provisionally to be known as the Pan London Vehicle, to:

 

Recommendation A

 

(i)            Develop and then oversee the running of London’s secure children’s home provision for a five-year period from 1st April 2023 to 31st March 2028, with a break-point after three years once the refreshed business case has been developed as well as the service pricing structure, commissioning approach, operating model, practice model and the SCH’s location is confirmed. Once the provision has launched, membership will be at a fixed annual cost of £20K (subject to inflation adjustment), unless an alternative model for funding the PLV, that does not require annual subscription, is agreed by members during the development phase and

(ii)          Collaborate with other PLV members on future joint commissioning programmes. Commits in principle to joint oversight and risk/benefit sharing of the secure children’s home provision, through the PLV, for a five-year period to 31st March 2028 (with three-year break point), that includes the build, service development and service commissioning phases, subject to ratification after the revision of the SCH business case, and renewable on a ten yearly cycle thereafter, with break-point after five years.

 

Recommendation B:

 

Delegates authority to Executive Director for Children, Lifelong Learning and Families in consultation with the Director of Finance and the Council’s Monitoring Officer to:

 

(i)            Finalise the legal documents required to set up, join and run the PLV and

(ii)          Make the final determination on the Council’s membership of the PLV, following completion of the revised SCH business case and, if appropriate, enter into all the legal agreements, contracts and other documents on behalf of the Council required to implement and run any aspect of the PLV arrangements.

Report author: Jane McSherry

Publication date: 07/12/2022

Date of decision: 05/12/2022

Decided at meeting: 05/12/2022 - Cabinet

Effective from: 13/12/2022

Accompanying Documents: