Adult social care: end of of EU transition period

Planning for the end of the EU transition period

Routes available if your access to essential products or supplies is disrupted

At 11pm on 31 December 2020, the UK will leave the EU Single Market and Customs Union. While the UK and EU have agreed a Trade and Cooperation Agreement, there is likely to be some border disruption, at least initially, due to additional paperwork, and this may impact upon supplies and supply routes.

Significant planning at local and national levels has already taken place to minimise the impact of any disruption.  However we recognise that you, as a social care provider, might be concerned about disruption to essential product or supplies, for example medicines, medical devices and clinical consumables (MDCC) or food, especially alongside the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and winter weather. 

Your first contact for any disruption or concerns should be your Health and Social Care Partnership/Local Authority, who have been working on local resilience and continuity plans with local providers.  If however your business as usual routes have been exhausted, this note provides you with information about what you can do if you experience disruption.

Do not stockpile beyond the usual arrangements that you would normally make at this time of year.

If you experience disruption in availability of essential products or supplies and your business as usual routes have been exhausted, please follow the steps below.

1. Your first contact for any disruption or concerns should be your Health and Social Care Partnership/Local Authority, who have been working on local resilience and continuity plans with local providers.
2. In cases where all business as usual and local arrangements (as in step 1) are exhausted and you are experiencing disruption in availability of essential products or supplies, contact the NSS National Support Call Centre number 0300 303 3020. Depending on your issue, the call centre will:

• Signpost you to existing sources of information and support;
• Direct you to local resilience and continuity plans and contact points;
• Find a solution, for example, by finding alternative products or suppliers; or
• Escalate to Scottish Government.

The call centre will be open from Monday 4 January 2021 onwards at the following times:

• Monday to Friday, 9.00 am – 6.00 pm
• Saturday and Sunday 9.00 am – 12.00 pm

We know that significant work has already been undertaken to prepare for EU withdrawal.  A checklist of actions for providers to review and to finalise planning for the period ahead is provided below.

Actions to take:

• Review your business continuity plans accordingly to prepare for any disruption.
• Encourage your employees and the people receiving your services to consider whether they should apply for the EU Settlement Scheme.
• Contact your Health and Social Care Partnership local authority to identify relevant leads for the end of the transition period and/or shortages in supply.
• Make contacts across your region or local area to share best practice and ways of working.
• Review your contracts with suppliers to identify any potential issues after the end of the transition period.
• Check with your local suppliers about their contingency plans in the case of disruption.
• Ensure you have processes in place for monitoring your own stock positions and any supplier issues so that you can identify and escalate issues at the earliest opportunity.
• Ensure all staff are aware of changes to delivery lead times and apply appropriate changes in practice and business continuity plans accordingly.
• Cascade this information on the reporting of supply issues and arrangements to members of staff as relevant.

Actions not to take:

Do not stockpile beyond the usual arrangements that you would normally make at this time of year.

• Latest advice and guidance on Coronavirus in Scotland.

Jeane Freeman
Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport

Adult social care: end of of EU transition period

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