The Director for Children, Families and Education Services has decided to award a DfE grant funded contract in the sum of £80,000 to for a term of 2 years to , Public Services Lab LLP (Trading as ‘Capacity') of Suite 3A, Queen Insurance Building 24 Queen Avenue Liverpool L2 4TZ, Company Registration No: OC414783) to conduct Phase 2 of the proposal to incubate and pilot an innovative, not-for-profit alternative delivery vehicle to the commercial staffing agencies currently used to recruit temporary children’s social workers in the Northwest of England.

The purposes of the proposed new alternative delivery vehicle will be to:
• increase the stability of the permanent workforce in children’s social care
• increase the quality of the temporary workforce in children’s social care
• reduce the costs associated with agency employees.
• Improve outcomes for service users, through the attraction, retention and conversion of Children’s Social Workers into permanent roles

Thus supporting one of our thematic priorities within the Wirral Plan 2021-2026: Brighter Futures - working together for brighter futures for our children, young people and their families by breaking the cycle of poor outcomes for all regardless of their background.

It is anticipated that these purposes will achieve this by pursuing the following activities in respect of Delivery of Venture:

- Official launch of Venture
- First year of trading activity
- Procurement of venture by Wirral MBC
- Procurement of venture by at least one further Local Authority
- Year 1 Evaluation report to share and disseminate learning across the region.
- Match and provide agency social workers to the remaining 4 LA areas (Capacity will find a Social Worker with the required skills and fit that ‘matches’ the needs of that authority and then work with the authority to place them in the vacancy)

And the following activities in respect of Fundraising:
- Pitch Deck creation.
- Initial Conversations with Funders
- Due Diligence/Proposals with funders
- Confirmation of funding for Year 2 +

Replicate the Commercial Services Group (CSG) Recruitment Joint-Venture Model

Do nothing. This option was rejected as each of
- the current cost of employing agency workers;
- the churn of agency staff;
- inconsistencies in their training and aptitude agency workers

is considered to be detrimental to the efficient delivery of is considered to be detrimental to the efficient delivery of the service;