My Department manages the Seniors Alert Scheme which encourages community support for vulnerable older people in our communities by providing grant assistance towards the purchase and installation of personal monitored alarms to enable older persons, of limited means, to continue to live securely in their homes with confidence, independence and peace of mind. The scheme is administered by local community and voluntary groups with the support of my Department.
My Department undertook to consider new approaches to the Seniors Alert Scheme in 2014 and arising from this, it was decided that the scheme be managed by Pobal, given that organisation’s significant experience delivering programmes on behalf of Government.
Pobal’s management and administrative services for the Scheme included an invitation to tender for the supply and installation of personal monitored alarms, which was publicly advertised on eTenders on 20 October 2014. The tender process, which is being led by Pobal, is almost complete. Following on from this, a panel of regional suppliers will be contracted to provide the equipment within specific regional areas. As the market for the equipment is well established, it was neither necessary nor appropriate to engage in consultations with the market on the matter prior to the tender process.
The Scheme is in the transitional period and the operational hand-over between my Department and Pobal will proceed mid 2015. In the meantime, Community and Voluntary Groups wishing to participate and draw down grant support under the Seniors Alert Scheme can apply to my Department and are required to meet the registration criteria before they can operate the Scheme.
It is important to note that my Department will retain responsibility for the strategic policy direction of the Scheme. It will also have an oversight role in relation to Pobal’s delivery of the Scheme, and will ensure that the valuable community support for elderly persons provided by the many hundreds of community and voluntary groups across the country will be maintained.
The fee payable to Pobal for administering the scheme will be €211,000 per annum. The new arrangements will allow my Department to concentrate on developing and improving the Scheme and to deploy staff currently engaged in administering the scheme to other business activities. It is anticipated that the resource efficiencies gained through the procurement and centralised financial management of service suppliers will allow more people to benefit from the scheme and will allow for consideration of funding additional items such as smoke detectors and/or carbon monoxide alarms under the Scheme.
This new approach will also reduce the administrative burden for the many hundreds of community and voluntary groups registered under the Scheme, who provide an excellent service for the elderly. It will enable the groups to concentrate on the main purpose of the Scheme, namely to support and interact with the elderly in the local community. This will enhance the outcome for both beneficiaries and community groups.
