North Ayrshire Council's in-house team plan to provide ALL the area's 'care at home' services.

The move, which affects services currently delivered by 1st Homecare, TLC Scotland and Delight Supported Living, will be finalised in June, when all the current contracts end.

The North Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) said they were "committed to securing future employment for the care providers' staff".

But those who need care can stick with their current providers - if they sign an agreement and their care company is still active in North Ayrshire after the council contracts end.

The council they revealed they will also be holding a series of events to provide advice and guidance for those staff over the coming weeks.

Until now, Care at Home services in North Ayrshire, which look after some of the area's most vulnerable residents, have been provided using a mixed model of in-house and purchased care to more than 2,000 people.

The lifeline service provides personal care and practical support with health and social care needs to a range of people, ensuring they can remain living safely and independently in their own homes for as long as possible. 

The authority's existing in-house Care at Home team currently provides the majority of the care provided to people across North Ayrshire, with the three private contractors delivering the rest on behalf of the HSCP.

The council says the change will ensure "a fair approach to care provision across North Ayrshire and provide long term stability and quality of care provision".

They said the in-house Care at Home service has experienced consistently high grading from the Care Inspectorate, the regulatory body in Scotland for social care.

People in receipt of care services who will be directly affected by this change have been contacted by the HSCP to provide information about how the change will affect them, what their options are regarding the care that they receive now and in the future, and to offer assurances that the partnership is working closely with their current care provider(s) to ensure that any disruption to the care and support they receive is minimised. 

If you currently work in Care at Home services in North Ayrshire and are employed by one of the affected care providers, and would like more information on attending an event, please contact June Gorman on 01294 310656 or junegorman@north-ayrshire.gov.uk.

Councillor Margaret Johnson, a member of the integration joint board which oversees the HSCP's work, said:“The decision to bring our Care at Home services back in house was not taken lightly.

"However, after careful scrutiny of the available options for the future of provision of these services it was clear that this option would allow the increased flexibility and assurance around the stability and quality of service provision that is required to provide the best possible care to service users."

Cllr Johnson' who is also NAC's cabinet member for health and social care, added: “Our in-house Care at Home service was awarded a rating of ‘very good’ in a recent inspection by the Care Inspectorate, illustrating the high standard of care provided by the team, which we hope will go some way to reassuring anyone who may have concerns.

“We understand that this might be a worrying time for those affected and their families, and we would like to assure anyone affected by this change that the safety and wellbeing of service users is always our utmost priority.

"Every effort will be made to ensure minimal impact on the services they receive.”