What's New Bulletin 135 - 9 March 2023
This is edition 135 of the provider bulletin, containing information on guidance, procedures and new initiatives. Very urgent or high priority communications may still be issued on an ad hoc basis, but we will try to keep these to a minimum.
1. Home Support and Supported Living - Business Continuity Plans Due to Adverse Weather (information for all Birmingham and BCC contracted providers)
2. REMINDER Updated Level 3 Cold Weather Alert (information for all providers)
3. Call for Infection Prevention and Control Champions - next virtual IPC Champions forum on 22 March 2023 (information for all Birmingham Care Homes)
4. Market Sustainability and Fair Cost of Care Fund – payment of 2022/23 grant monies (Eligible Birmingham located older adult care homes, 18 years + Home Support and Extra Care Sheltered Housing locations)
5. Public for Peoples Services Forum 21 March 2023 – Early help with homes and money advice (information for all Birmingham providers)
6. Skills for Care Updates March 2023 (information for all providers)
7. Birmingham City Council Commissioners geographical forum dates (information for all contracted providers)
1. Home Support and Supported Living - Business Continuity Plans Due to Adverse Weather (information for all Birmingham and BCC contracted providers)
In view of the adverse weather conditions and potential difficulties around carers being delayed in delivering personal care calls, can you please ensure that you have put into motion your Adverse Weather Care Plans.
Please contact your Area Commissioners and seek advice and guidance if you are struggling to deliver home care calls and discuss what options you would like to implement. Area Commissioners are here to provide guidance and advice so please ensure you alert them as a priority.
You can find your Area Commissioners contact details on the following link;
2. REMINDER Updated Level 3 Cold Weather Alert (information for all providers)
I am writing to you as the Level 3 Met Office Cold Weather Alert issued for the West Midlands has been updated. There is now a 90% probability of severe cold weather/icy conditions/snow between Wednesday the 8 March and Monday the 13 March. This weather is likely to increase the health risks to vulnerable patients and disrupt the delivery of services.
Information and guidance has been circulated to provider. Please share with your staff, service users, communities and partner networks to help ensure that citizens - particularly those who are most vulnerable - are adequately prepared. If you don't have copies of the information and guidance, please email marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk
West Midland - Level 3 (Amber) - 90% risk - Temperatures are expected to be widely below average, both by day and night, with widespread frosts overnight. Spells of snow are likely, with ice an additional hazard.
In addition, please be aware that you can sign up to the Met Office email alert service via the link below:
3. Call for Infection Prevention and Control Champions - next virtual IPC Champions forum on 22 March 2023 (information for all Birmingham Care Homes)
Are you someone who is passionate and enthusiastic about safe infection prevention and control (IPC), constantly striving to protect residents/service users, staff and visitors from infection? Are you a role model and able to influence colleagues practice with integrity, innovation and trust? Then we would like to hear from you.
Birmingham City Council has teamed up with our NHS partners at Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust to develop and support a network of IPC champions. This currently includes annual face to face training as well as access to IPC nurses for advice and guidance and a range of IPC materials to use across your service. The attached sets out the role of an IPC Champion and the support you will receive. We already have a network of over 120 care home IPC Champions and we need you!
To register as an IPC Champion, please email: ipcdata@nhs.net.
If you would like to join our next virtual IPC Champions forum on 22 March 2023 at 11am, please use the link below:
Join on your computer, mobile app or room device
Click here to join the meeting
Or call in (audio only)
+44 20 3794 0272,,664557113# United Kingdom, London
Phone Conference ID: 664 557 113#
4. Market Sustainability and Fair Cost of Care Fund – payment of 2022/23 grant monies (Eligible Birmingham located older adult care homes, 18 years + Home Support and Extra Care Sheltered Housing locations)
Further to the government announcement of the Market Sustainability and Fair Cost of Care Fund, the Council is making payment of its allocated grant funding for the year 2022/23 to eligible Birmingham located care providers. In line with the grant conditions and the details set out in the Council’s Market Sustainability Plan we will be making a single payment in March 2023 equivalent to a fee uplift to the following care packages:
Birmingham CQC registered and located older adult (65 years+) care homes with older adult (65 years+) care packages commissioned by Birmingham City Council
- Will receive a payment broadly equivalent to a proxy 2% fee increase for the year 2022/23
Birmingham CQC registered and located home support (18 years+) and extra care sheltered housing care locations with adult (18+) home support care packages commissioned by Birmingham City Council
- Will receive a payment broadly equivalent to a proxy 3.5% fee increase for the year 2022/23
The payment has been calculated by identifying open care packages on the Council’s care records system between April and December 2022 and applying the proxy uplift dependent on the number of days the care package was open for service delivery during this period. Care packages which were open at the end of December 2022 are assumed to have remained open until 31 March 2023 for the purposes of this calculation and in order to simulate a full year effect of the proxy uplift.
The payments are made based on the information held in the Council’s care records system and while significant work has been carried out to ensure the accuracy of the payments, we are unfortunately not able to amend the payment should any error in the Council’s records come to light in the future. The payment therefore represents full and final distribution of the grant funding for 2022/23.
We expect payments to reach bank accounts of recipient care providers by the Friday 17 March 2023 and you will be able to identify payments on remittance advice notes from the reference which will be in the following format – CQC location ID number + CQC location name + FCOC 2022/23. For example, 1-10000302982 Henley House FCOC 22/23. A payment list, which identifies those registered locations to which funding is being distributed, has been circulated to providers. If you don't have a copy, please email marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk
You are receiving this information because you or your organisation has identified you as a main contact point for the distribution of information published by the Council. Please ensure that you forward this message to relevant colleagues within your organisation, in particular your Finance teams, which will use the information above to identify the payment.
5. People for Public Services Forum 21 March 2023 – Early help with homes and money advice (information for all Birmingham providers)
The People for Public Services Forum would like to invite you to its online meeting on Tuesday 21 March 2023 11:00am – 12:30pm
In July 2022 we met with some Birmingham residents to ask them for ideas of how we can develop these services. We asked attendees to give their views on we can prevent and intervene early when it comes to matters relating to their home and finances.
What does early intervention and prevention mean?
Prevention is putting things in place to avoid the problem arising in the first place.
Early intervention is once someone has a problem, to identifying and provide effective early support to try and stop it getting worse.
What will the session include?
- Share ideas of what we think would be good early intervention and prevention.
- Ask you if you think this is useful and if we have captured everything you told us in July 2022.
To book a place, please click the link below You will be emailed a link 24 hours before the event goes live.
People for Public Services Forum - 21 March 2023
If you have any issues registering, please do not hesitate to contact us via our email getinvolved@birmingham.gov.uk
Can you please also share this information with staff that are Birmingham residents.
6. Skills for Care Updates March 2023 (information for all providers)
Updates from Skills for Care and their partners, about network meetings, events, information and resources over the coming days and weeks, have been circulated to providers. If you don't have copies, please email marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk
7. Birmingham City Council Commissioners geographical forum dates (information for all contracted providers)
Please visit the following web page for the list of upcoming area forums with your area commissioners;
The forums are an opportunity for care providers to discuss and engage with their area commissioners, other providers and partners on a range of topics as well as sharing good news stories and good practice.
Invitations and agendas will be circulated prior to the meeting. Please contact your area commissioner if you would like to suggest a future agenda item. Contact details are available on the link above.