1.  Farewell Message from Alison Malik, Head of Commissioning, Birmingham City Council (Information for all Providers)

2.  REMINDER Care Provider Cost Pressure Survey – DEADLINE 19 August 2026 (All Birmingham Contracted Providers)

3.  REMINDER Birmingham City Council and Birmingham Children's Trust are Moving to a New Finance System and Will not be Making Routine Payments Between 20 July and 18 August 2026 (Information for All Providers with BCC Funded Citizens)

4. Birmingham City Council – Revised Change of Name for our Commissioning Teams (Information for all Providers)

5.  REMINDER Birmingham City Council - Ensuring Your Current Insurance Documents are Uploaded to the CareMatch Portal (Information for all Birmingham City Council Contracted Providers)

6.  Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Learning Disabilities and Autism Provider Collaborative, Solihull Healthcare Partnership - New Video Promotes Annual Health Checks for People with a Learning Disability (Information for all Providers)

7.  Care Quality Commission (CQC) Update for Adult Social Care Providers (Information for all Providers)

8.  Capacity Tracker Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) Updates - What's New to Capacity Tracker (Information for all Providers)

9.  Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) Priority Tool (Information for all Providers)

10. Birmingham Safeguarding Adults Board (BSAB) - Publication of SARs Abdul 2025 and Simon 2026: Key Learning (Information for all Providers)

11. The Big Conversation on Care - Baroness Casey Launches the Big Conversation on Care with the Public (Information for all Providers in England)

12. REMINDER Skills for Care Updates for August 2026 (Information for all Birmingham and Solihull Providers)

13. REMINDER Birmingham and Solihull Training Hub – Training Dates in August – September 2026 (Information for Birmingham and Solihull Care Homes)

1.  Farewell Message from Alison Malik, Head of Commissioning, Birmingham City Council (Information for all Providers)

I wanted to let care providers know that I will be leaving my role as Head of Commissioning at Birmingham City Council on 20th August 2026. From 1st September 2026, I will be taking up the role of Associate Director of Strategic Commissioning and Partnerships at Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council.

Before I leave, I wanted to take a moment to thank you all for your support, challenge, and honesty over the last 11 years. Together, we have navigated some particularly challenging periods, including the pandemic, major tendering exercises, the introduction of fixed fees, new IT systems, and a new quality assurance framework, to name just a few.  Alongside these challenges, we have worked hard to strengthen our partnerships by developing new ways of working together, increasing opportunities for engagement, and being more transparent in communicating our expectations and decisions.  We have also championed the need for ongoing investment in the Adult Social Care market to ensure its sustainability.

Last year, a number of providers told us how much they valued the continuity of Birmingham's Commissioning Team and recognised the efforts we have made to improve relationships, transparency, and engagement with care providers. This feedback is a testament to the dedication and commitment of the entire team. While we have not always got everything right, I have genuinely valued your insight, ideas, and your desire to work collaboratively with us.  At times, the conversations have been difficult, but your constructive challenge has helped us improve services for the benefit of Birmingham's citizens. Personally, those experiences have taught me invaluable lessons about resilience, transparency, and the importance of building trust.

I know that I am leaving you in the capable hands of the Commissioning Team and whoever takes on the role of Head of Commissioning in the future. Before I go, I simply want to say a heartfelt thank you for everything you do to support some of our most vulnerable citizens, for the support you have given the Commissioning Team, and for the support you have shown me throughout my time at Birmingham City Council.

I wish you all the very best for the future.

Alison Malik
Head of Commissioning
Birmingham City Council

2.  REMINDER Care Provider Cost Pressure Survey – DEADLINE 19 August 2026 (All Birmingham Contracted Providers)

As part of the Council’s approach to gathering evidence from care providers to inform our 2026 fee uplift proposals, we are seeking a range of feedback and information about last year’s fee increases, current and emerging cost pressures, the impact of the Employment Rights Act, and sustainability risks across the sector.

You are invited to complete a MS Forms based questionnaire and submit this to us by 12.00 midday on Wednesday, 19 August 2026.

N.B. there are two questionnaires, one for care homes and one for home support, supported living and extra care providers. The questionnaires ask the same questions, but please complete the one appropriate to your service provision type. If your service is dual registered, e.g. a care home which also provides home support, you can of course submit two questionnaires if the information you wish to submit is service type specific.

We want to assure you that any information you provide will be viewed by the Council only. Data shall be anonymised, aggregated and analysed. If the Council decides to publish or share any of the data or analysis this will be done on an anonymised basis and no information or comments will be attributed to a specific company, organisation, or individual.

Please see the links to the questionnaires below. Should you have queries in relation to the survey please email costofcare@birmingham.gov.uk

Care homes survey:

Care Home provider cost pressure survey - 2026/27

Home support, Supported Living, and Extra Care survey:

Home Support, Supported Living and Extra Care provider cost pressure survey - 2026/27

3.  REMINDER Birmingham City Council and Birmingham Children's Trust are Moving to a New Finance System and Will not be Making Routine Payments Between 20 July and 18 August 2026 (Information for All Providers with BCC Funded Citizens)

Home Support and Supported Living Providers paid by invoice

For Home Support and Supported Living Providers that invoice the Council, you should have already submitted your invoices for the period 27/03 and 27/04 and these are currently being processed.

Following the finance system migration, payments will resume from 18 August 2026 and will be processed as quickly as possible.

For Care Homes and Supported Living Providers paid by Autopay

For care homes and supported living providers that are paid automatically by the Council, payments for the period 27/05 were made early and period 27/06 is due to be paid from 24 August in line with the below schedule:

Schedule No.	Invoice Period	PTP Run	Release	BACs Run
27/05	13 July 2026 – 9 August 2026	13 July     2026	17 July 2026	20 July 2026
27/06	10 August 2026 – 6 September 2026	17 August 2026	21 August 2026	24 August 2026

You will continue to receive standard payment remittances, however more detailed Care First remittances are currently on a request only basis via SCHAdultsPayments@birmingham.gov.uk.  After the 18 August, it is hoped that routine Care First remittances will be provided. 

Financial Difficulties During the Transition Period

If, between 20 July and 18 August 2026, you experience financial difficulties that may affect your ability to continue providing care and support, please contact:   marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk

Thank you for your cooperation and support during this transition.

4. Birmingham City Council – Revised Change of Name for our Commissioning Teams (Information for all Providers)

On 9 July we informed you of a change in the name of our Commissioning Teams. These have since been revised, please see the table below. Your area commissioners remain the same.

The Shaping the Market webpages have been updated to reflect this change:

 Information for care providers | Birmingham City Council

Previous Dual Constituency	Previous Commissioning Area	Revised New Locality
Sutton & Erdington	Area 1	North
Perry Carr & Ladywood	Area 2	West
Hodge Hill & Yardley	Area 3	East
Hall Green & Selly Oak	Area 4	Central
Edgbaston & Northfield	Area 5	South

To find contact details for your area commissioners, please see the following web page:

Area Commissioning Teams – Contact and Care Provider Forum information | Who to contact in the commissioning team | Birmingham City Council

5.  REMINDER Birmingham City Council - Ensuring Your Current Insurance Documents are Uploaded to the CareMatch Portal (Information for all Birmingham City Council Contracted Providers)

It is an important part of your contractual obligations to Birmingham City Council, and a legal requirement, to ensure you have valid insurance at all times. It is important that when you renew your insurance documents you remember to upload a copy to the CareMatch Portal following the instructions in Section 8.8 of the Care Match Portal User Guide:

CareMatch Portal User Guide

If you are experiencing technical issues uploading the documents, please email market.intelligence@birmingham.gov.uk

Reminder alerts are sent from CareMatch Portal to inform you when your insurance documents were coming up to their expiry date and when they had expired to assist you to remain compliant with your contractual obligations around insurance. To ensure you are receiving these alerts, check your email alerts are switched on (see section 4.5 of the User Guide for how you can check and change user settings).

No evidence of current insurance cover on the CareMatch Portal at the levels required by your contract will be treated as a breach of contract until evidence of cover is provided.

Providers are finding the cost of insurance has risen as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and as such it is important you allow enough time for finding an alternative insurance provider, if needed, before your current insurance expires. Contact your Care Association to see what support and advice they can offer. It is important that you inform you area commissioners if you are having difficulty arranging future cover before the expiry of your current insurance.

Who to contact in the Commissioning Team?

6.  Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Learning Disabilities and Autism Provider Collaborative, Solihull Healthcare Partnership - New Video Promotes Annual Health Checks for People with a Learning Disability (Information for all Providers)

Colleagues working with young people and adults with a learning disability are asked to share a new video to encourage more people with a learning disability to attend their Annual Health Check.

The video is around Learning Disability Annual Health Checks and can be viewed here:

Learning Disability Annual Health Checks - Information for patients, families and carers

Developed by the Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Learning Disabilities and Autism Provider Collaborative, Solihull Healthcare Partnership and people with lived experience, the video highlights the benefits of these important yearly appointments. An Annual Health Check looks at both the physical and mental wellbeing of a person with a learning disability. People aged 14 years and over who are on their GP’s Learning Disability Register are entitled to an Annual Health Check.

Annual Health Checks are a key part of a new system-wide three-year Learning Disability and Autisim Delivery Plan, helping to identify physical and mental health concerns early and improve long-term health outcomes.
Learning Disability and Autism Delivery Plan

The video features personal experiences from people with a learning disability, carers and parents, alongside expert insight from a local GP.

Please share the video with relevant service users, who should contact their GP surgery to arrange an Annual Health Check.

share the video

More information on Annual Health Checks can be found via the:

Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust website

7.  Care Quality Commission (CQC) Update for Adult Social Care Providers (Information for all Providers)

Please use the link below for the regular CQC update for providers working in adult social care.

CQC update for adult social care providers

8.  Capacity Tracker Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) Updates - What's New to Capacity Tracker (Information for all Providers)

This monthly bulletin brings together key updates and useful information about Capacity Tracker and the care sector that we think will be of interest to you.

20260629 - whats new - july final.pdf

For support with the Capacity Tracker, please see details below:

• For system support and guidance - please contact NECS Capacity Tracker Support Centre - 0191 691 3729 or necsu.capacitytracker@nhs.net (Open Monday to Friday from 8am to 5pm, excluding public holidays)
• Changing registration, closing, change of ownership – please contact the CQC - T: 03000 616161, E: enquiries@cqc.org.uk, CQC Provider Portal (Open Monday to Friday from 8.30am to 5.30pm, excluding public holidays)

If you receive an enforcement notice – please contact the NHS Business Services Authority Enforcement Team (NHSBSA) – T: 0300 330 2088, E: enforcement@nhsbsa.nhs.uk (Open Monday to Friday from 8.30am to 4.30pm

9.  Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) Priority Tool (Information for all Providers)

ADASS has devised a new prioritisation tool for triaging DOLS referrals.  Further information about this subject has been circulated to providers. If you don’t have a copy, please email marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk.

10. Birmingham Safeguarding Adults Board (BSAB) - Publication of SARs Abdul 2025 and Simon 2026: Key Learning (Information for all Providers)

Please see the links below to two Safeguarding Adults Reviews recently published on the Birmingham Safeguarding Adults Board website:

• SAR Abdul 2025 | Birmingham Safeguarding Adults Board
• SAR Simon 2026 | Birmingham Safeguarding Adults Board

Please ensure that the learning from these reviews is shared and discussed within your teams and organisations. Each review includes a 7-minute briefing, which highlights the key learning and practice points.

11. The Big Conversation on Care - Baroness Casey Launches the Big Conversation on Care with the Public (Information for all Providers in England)

Baroness Casey of Blackstock launched The Big Conversation on Care on 29 July2026, the most ambitious public conversation in a generation, handing the public a direct role in shaping the future of adult social care in England.

Between now and April 2027, The Big Conversation will give people across England the opportunity to say what they want and expect from a future National Care Service, including on the tough questions on who it should support, what families should reasonably be expected to do, and how the country should pay for care in a fair and sustainable way.

Please see below for further information

Baroness Casey launches the Big Conversation on Care with the public | The Casey Commission

Providers are encouraged to participate and also share with their citizens and their families.

12. REMINDER Skills for Care Updates for August 2026 (Information for all Birmingham and Solihull Providers)

Please find attached Skills for Care updates for August 2026.

Headlines include:

• The Training Hub by Skills for Care- NEW courses added
• NEW: Applications now open for the Care Workforce Pathway Care Provider Support Programme
• Birmingham and Solihull Registered Managers Network meeting
• BBCS ICS Social Care & Independent Sector Faculty information
• Skills for Care National and Regional Events in July
• Other Partner News

13. REMINDER Birmingham and Solihull Training Hub – Training Dates in August – September 2026 (Information for Birmingham and Solihull Care Homes)

Have you visited the Birmingham and Solihull training hub website yet?  You can view information as someone working in a primary or social care role in the Solihull / Birmingham area, as a student looking for support with career development or as a visitor wanting to find out more.

Social Care – BSol Training hub

All training events are listed in the calendar section. You can also contact the training hub by email bsol.traininghub@nhs.net

The next sessions are:

12 August 2026 Falls – Support to Care Home Team, UHB 2:30 pm - 3:30 pm

18 August 2026 12:30 pm - 1:30 pm Introduction to Dementia, Support to Care Home Team, UHB

7 September 2026 Advance Care Planning 9:30 am - 12:30 pm

7 September 2026 Foundations in adult palliative and end of life care – 4-day programme 9:00 am – 4:00 pm 

• 23 September 2026 9:30 am – 4:00 pm
• 6 October 2026 9:30 am - 3:00 pm
• 29 October 2026 12:00 pm - 5:15 pm

7 September 2026 Assessment and Care Planning 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm

7 September 2026 Care in the Dying Phase 2:30 pm - 4:00 pm