Procurement and the council

Ethical Care Charter

We adopted the principles of the Ethical Care Charter in 2018. We expect all companies that secure Care at Home contracts with the council to work towards compliance with this charter.

Our commitments:

• we base care visits on client needs rather than strict time limits or tasks
• we match visit duration to client needs and by exception a minimum of 15 minute visits may be commissioned dependent on the assessed needs of the person

Contractor commitments:

• pay all homecare workers the real living wage
• provide Statutory sick pay to all eligible staff
• offer an Occupational sick pay scheme to ensure that staff do not feel pressurised to work when they are ill to protect the welfare of their vulnerable clients
• pay for travel time, travel costs, and essential tools like mobile phones
• clients will be allocated the same homecare worker(s) wherever possible
• zero-hour contracts will not be used in place of permanent contracts
• clear and accountable procedures for following up staff concerns about clients’ wellbeing
• all homecare workers will be regularly trained to the necessary standard to provide a good service (at no cost to themselves and in work time)
• homecare workers will be given the opportunity to meet co-workers to share best practice and limit their isolation
• visits will be scheduled so that homecare workers are not forced to rush their time with clients or leave their client early to get to the next one on time

Modern Slavery Charter

We adopted the principles of the Modern Slavery Charter in 2018. We require all companies who secure contracts with the Council to comply with this charter.

Our commitments:

• train our Procurement team to understand modern slavery through the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS) online course on Ethical Procurement and Supply
• we scrutinise and challenge abnormally low bids to prevent exploitation and ensure compliance with subsidy regulations.
• publicise our whistle-blowing policy so staff can safely report any suspected examples of modern slavery
• we regularly audit our contract spending to identify high-risk areas to identify any potential issues with modern slavery.
• highlight for suppliers any risks identified concerning modern slavery and refer them to the relevant agencies to be addressed.
• highlight to suppliers that contracted workers are free to join a trade union without facing discrimination.
• we refer any provider for investigation via the National Crime Agency’s national referral mechanism any contractors identified as a cause for concern regarding modern slavery.
• report publicly on the implementation of this policy annually

Contractor commitments:

• must comply fully with the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Act 2015 and the Modern Slavery Act 2015 wherever they apply, with contract termination as a potential sanction of non-compliance
• are encouraged to adopt a whistle-blowing policy which enables their staff to blow the whistle on any suspected examples of modern slavery