- Levels of funding paid to Shared Lives carers in Walsall is below the National average
- Banding levels need to be reviewed as there are inconsistencies within payments across the different support offers and are not considered equitable
- Inability to recruit Shared Lives carers
- Not enough new “younger” carers are being recruited
Market Position Statement 2025 to 2040 for Services for Working Age Adults with Long-Term Needs - Market Status Shared Lives
Market Rating – Supply Of Shared Lives Services
The diagrams below are a judgement by commissioners of the supply, quality and stability of the shared lives provision in Walsall.
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Current supply of Shared Lives in Walsall is rated ‘Amber’ from the perspective of supply as there needs to be more Shared Lives carers and households to meet demand.
Market Rating – Quality Of Shared Lives Services
The current quality of Shared Lives in Walsall is judged as ‘green’ rating / good. Managers complete direct observations with scheme workers through standard documentation to ensure that support is consistent throughout the service
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Walsall’s Shared Lives processes including initial matching and individual placements and carers reviews encourage feedback from people using the services and carers. All documents completed by the workers are signed off by a member of the management team meaning documents are read for quality assurance.
The scheme also utilises a quality assurance tool, which is completed by the service operational manager across provider services and the findings and recommendations from that are discussed at regular managers meetings. People in a shared lives placement have regular placement reviews which include a multi-disciplinary approach. Annual questionnaires are sent out to carers and service users to obtain feedback about the service, this is with support from the community department who will support with collating the answers which are then fed back as appropriate. People living in a longterm placement are supported to complete the questionnaires by other representatives outside of the placement.
The latest CQC inspection for the Walsall Shared Lives Service was on the 5th June 2019. The CQC rated the service as overall “Good.” The CQC inspection report was overall very positive and identified many good practices and evidenced working towards promoting independence for individuals:
- People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests
- People’s support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.
Market Rating - Stability In Shared Lives Carers
Shared Lives carers stability is considered ‘amber’ given the ageing nature of Shared Lives carers and households and a need to drive recruitment for new Shared Lives carers. Not having a pipeline of Shared Lives carers threatens the stability of this provider market.
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Current Market Status
Shared Lives is an in-house service. As part of an ongoing review, a market analysis exercise is being completed to gauge provider interest and capacity within Walsall. Provider engagement on this is being planned.
Market Risks
Market Data And Insight
- The current service is predominantly providing support for people with a learning disability
- There is a demographic of older carers within the Walsall service who have been Shared Lives carers a long time
- Financial data indicates Walsall is below average costs in comparison to other Councils
- In phase 3 of the Shared Lives review, an implementation plan will be compiled outlining the future direction of travel for the service. This will incorporate all the innovation researched and show the incremental growth within the service
- This is due to be completed in Spring 2025 with actual implementation commencing from April 2025 onwards with the support of Shared Lives Plus.
Market Opportunities
- Widening the offer of Shared Lives service depending on the outcome of the market analysis exercise completed
- Consideration of Shared Lives support for those with complex care
Shared Lives Future Service Objectives:
- To increase the number of people in a Shared Lives Placement
- To expand the Shared Lives offer and increase the number of Shared Lives Carers
- To increase individual choice and independence
- To improve knowledge and skills of Shared Lives carers
- To facilitate co-production of potential future service offers
- To identify options around monitoring and evaluation
- To promote and raise awareness of the Shared Lives service and offer
- To ensure future proofing of existing services and to meet identified future needs
- To implement a marketing and growth plan
- To complete a business case/implementation plan for the future delivery of the Shared Lives Service.