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Contingency plans in place for contracts with struggling care provider
Contingency plans are in place for housing association tenants in south London whose care is being provided by the troubled Allied Healthcare.
A notice earlier this month from the regulator of health and social care services, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), said Allied may not have the funding to continue beyond 30 November.
According to a spokesperson from Allied, this deadline has now been extended by three weeks thanks to an agreement with its lender, Royal Bank of Scotland.
Inside Housing understands that two extra care schemes managed by the large housing association Metropolitan Thames Valley have contracts with Allied to provide care to the residents.
These contracts are with the local authority, Lambeth, which is responsible for arranging and managing them.
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A spokesperson for Lambeth Council told Inside Housing that “contingency plans [are] in place” and that the local authority is “committed to ensuring that there is no disruption to care”.
Industry sources said earlier this month that housing associations should be ready to collaborate with local authorities on finding replacement care providers if they have contracts with Allied.
The CQC wrote to 84 local authorities warning them that care services may be disrupted and they need to form a plan for providing alternative services.
A spokesperson for Allied blamed the CQC for “leading a number of customers to transfer care services to alternative providers and disrupting staff retention and recruitment”.
The spokesperson added: “These developments have intensified the impact of the challenging environment within which we operate and come immediately prior to the Christmas period, when pressures on care providers are at their highest. This has also meant that we have had to re-evaluate our long-term business plan.”
According to the spokesperson, Allied is seeking to transfer all of its contracts to local providers, including transferring staff.
Although most of Allied’s business involves providing care for people in their own homes, Inside Housing understands it has several contracts on extra care schemes.
A spokesperson for Metropolitan Thames Valley told Inside Housing: “We will work closely with the local authority and the provider to ensure a smooth transition.”
Update: at 9.48 on 20.11.18 This story was updated when Allied provided further information about its financial situation.
