Issue - meetings

That:

1)              procurement of the healthy child programme in collaboration with West Berkshire and Reading local authorities be agreed;

2)              the authority to proceed with necessary governance and process decisions to enable the award of contract be delegated to the Director of Children’s Services, the Chief Executive and the Head of Public Health, in consultation with the Lead Member for Children’s Services.

The Executive considered a report relating to the procurement of the Healthy Child Programme for Wokingham alongside West Berkshire and Reading councils.

The Executive Member for Children’s Services advised the meeting that the Council had a statutory duty to provide a Healthy Child Programme which consists of health visiting of children between 0-5, anti-natal and post-natal support and school nursing. 

The current contract was due to expire in March 2022 therefore the Council were looking to start a new contract in April 2022, running for three years with an opportunity to cancel the contract or extend for another year.  Councillor Clark advised that the preferred option was to procure the new contract in collaboration with Berkshire and Reading Councils as this would provide combined purchase power and therefore likely to attract a larger provider.  The intention was that Wokingham would still have its own service level agreement and would set its own KPIs.

RESOLVED That:

1)              procurement of the healthy child programme in collaboration with West Berkshire and Reading local authorities be agreed;

2)              authority to proceed with necessary governance and process decisions to enable the award of contract be delegated to the Director of Children’s Services, the Chief Executive and the Head of Public Health, in consultation with the Lead Member for Children’s Services.