Decision details

5.1 The Lead Member considered a report by the Director of Adult Social Care and Health.

DECISIONS

5.2 The Lead Member RESOLVED to

(1) Agree to the Council undertaking a targeted consultation in respect of the proposal to close the drop-in sexual and reproductive health service provided at the Circle Room in Lewes; and

(2) note that a further report setting out the outcome of the consultation will be presented to the Lead Member once the consultation has completed.

REASONS

5.3             If the proposal to close the Circle Room goes ahead, existing users of the service will be able to access alternative sexual health services in East Sussex, such as the Councils’ online services or community pharmacies. In addition, as most existing users are registered with the Foundry Health Care GP Practices, they can also access these services via their GP as sexual health services are currently provided as part of the GP offer. A further alternative is to access specialist sexual health services in Brighton.

5.4           Having considered the nature of the service, the cohort of users, the value of the contract and the likely impact of any closure, undertaking a full public consultation would likely be a disproportionate use of resources. However, it is important, given the potential service closure, that the Council undertakes some form of engagement to understand the views of service users and the impact the proposal would have on them. Consequently, a targeted consultation focussing on the users of the service is considered a proportionate approach. An Equality Impact Assessment will also be undertaken by the Council ahead of any final decision on the proposal.

5.5           Given the Council’s current financial circumstances, the ‘best value’ duty to secure continuous improvement having regard to a combination of economy, efficiency and effectiveness and the Council Priority to ‘make best use of resources, now and in the future’, it is necessary that all the services commissioned by the Council are kept under review. It has been identified that the drop-in services at the Circle Room are potentially no longer as essential or cost effective as originally modelled given the shift in the cohort of users and the range of suitable alternative services that are now available (including the face-to-face sexual health specialist service, the Council’s online offer, sexual health provision by local pharmacies and sexual health provision by GP practices, amongst others).