Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, I request information about your Out-of-Hours / Emergency Duty Team (EDT) service for Children’s and/or Adults Social Care.
I would appreciate data for the current financial year (2025/26) and, where readily available, the previous year (2024/25).
Section 1 — Service Structure and Coverage
• Please confirm whether the local authority operates its own Out-of-Hours / Emergency Duty Service (EDT) for Children’s Social Care, Adults Social Care, or both.
• If not directly operated, please identify the organisation providing the service (e.g. NHS Trust, shared service, or contractor) and the contractual arrangement.
• Please describe the structure of the EDT, including job titles and number of FTE posts by grade or role.
• Please specify which teams or functions are integrated (e.g. Children’s, Adults, AMHP, Housing).
• Please confirm whether EDT staff work primarily from a designated base, from home, or through a hybrid arrangement.
Section 2 — Staffing and Pay
• Please provide details of EDT staffing, including:
1. • job titles and grades; copy of the structure
1. • whether sessional/bank staff are used and their pay rates;
1. • details of any Out-of-Hours/Unsocial Hours or standby allowances (including method of calculation and whether sessional/bank staff also receive these);
1. • any market supplements or retention payments applied to EDT roles; and
1. • whether staff receive time off in lieu (TOIL), overtime, or other additional compensation.
1.
Section 3 — Rota and On-Call Arrangements
• Please provide a copy or outline of the current EDT rota and on-call arrangements, including shift hours, number of staff per shift, management cover, and handover process.
Section 4 — Finance and Budget
Please provide:
• the total annual budget allocated to the EDT service for the current and previous financial year;
• a breakdown of this budget by staffing, management, allowances, and commissioned elements;
• any funding contributions from partner organisations (e.g. NHS, district councils, other Local Authorities if shared services, police); and
• any known efficiency or savings targets applied to the EDT service.
Section 5 — Performance and Future Plans
Please provide:
• a summary or copy of the most recent internal or external review, audit or inspection relating to the EDT service;
• the number of referrals or contacts handled by the EDT in the past 12 months (broken down by Children’s and Adults if available);
• any current proposals, consultation documents or business cases regarding future changes (or recent changes), restructuring or reorganisation (LGR?) of the EDT or OOH service.