Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 20
20
Accepted
HMPPS is using a Funding Agreement, rather than a contract, to manage Oasis.
Recommendation
HMPPS is using a Funding Agreement, rather than a contract, to manage Oasis. Such an agreement will not have a defined duration, although it will include an option to terminate for convenience, and HMPPS is still working out how it will manage performance under this arrangement.68 HMPPS told us that partnership working with Oasis includes designing its Funding Agreement with input from Oasis as well as DfE. It also mentioned plans for an assurance programme with different ladders of intervention, to identify and address signs of poor performance.69 Although it seems late in the process to discuss incentives and levers in the funding agreement, HMPPS told us that it was confident it could address potential drawbacks of this approach.70
Government Response Summary
The government agreed to supplement the Funding Agreement with handbooks on finance, governance, and assurance, detailing performance reporting and issue management, adapting the 'ladders of intervention' approach from the Department for Education to drive improvements.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
5.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: December 2022 5.2 The Funding Agreement (the legal contracting vehicle between the Ministry and secure school providers) will be supplemented by handbooks on finance, governance and assurance (setting out requirements and expectations on the secure school provider, including performance). The Funding Agreement package is being completed and will detail performance reporting and issue management. It will adapt the ‘ladders of intervention’ approach from the Department for Education to drive improvements, escalating through formal directions and termination where required. 5.3 In addition to these arrangements, the secure school will be accountable to its governing trust. There will be independent monitoring of the quality of care in place per Regulation 44 of the Children’s Home Regulations 2015 and Ofsted will have comprehensive regulatory powers under the Care Standards Act 2000 when the secure school opens. 5.4 As a registered children’s home, the secure school will have a statutory right to refuse a placement if it believes the child cannot be safely or properly accommodated or, when accommodating, it would have a detrimental impact on other children at the school. Clauses within the Funding Agreement will ensure the school is committed to providing a 49-bed service suitable for the full range of the custody cohort, and that the statutory right to refuse is exercised appropriately. 5.5 The secure school provider has a legal obligation (per Section 10 of the Academies Act 2010) to consult the local community on whether it should enter into the Funding Agreement. This consultation must be concluded, and the findings considered prior to the Funding Agreement being signed.