Councillors are being asked to extend community nursing contracts across Brighton and Hove for up to two years to match a neighbouring council.
Sussex Community Foundation Trust currently holds the £5 million-a-year contract to provide health visiting and school nursing services in the city.
The contract will be extended from April next year if Brighton and Hove City Council’s Adult Social Care and Public Health Sub-Committee agrees.
Members are being asked to agree an initial one-year extension, with the option of a second year subject to mutual agreement.
The same NHS trust provides health visitor and school nursing services in West Sussex where the contract runs until March 2023, with the option to extend it for a further year.
A report for the sub-committee, which is due to meet on Tuesday (7 September), said that there were advantages in matching the contract expiry dates.
Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust and Western Sussex Hospitals had merged, bringing together the maternity services at the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, Princess Royal, Haywards Health, St Richard’s, Chichester, and Worthing Hospital.
The report said: “The midwifery and health visiting pathway should be as seamless as possible for mothers and babies and their partners.
“With the merger of Western … and Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals to form University Hospitals Sussex the delivery of midwifery services across Brighton and Hove and West Sussex will integrate.
“Creating the conditions to consider joint delivery of health visiting and school nursing across the same area may enable a health visiting pathway that better mirrors the options in accessing midwifery services in hospital and in accessing community-based health services.”
Health visiting teams in Brighton and Hove are based in children’s centres, alongside the community midwives, and are supported by early years co-ordinators employed by the council.
Their role is to support all mothers, babies and their partners, provide early help for those who need extra support and “targeted support” for vulnerable families.
The report said: “The provider Sussex Community Foundation Trust has met or exceeded the key performance indicators throughout the four years of the current contract.
“The pandemic impacts on some areas of performance due to restrictions and NHS staff deployment. However, the provider has now recovered in all performance areas.”
Councillors are being advised not to retender the service because of the lack of alternative providers.
Staff wages account for more than £4 million of the annual contract value, with most on NHS pay schemes which cannot be adjusted to “improve the bottom line”.
The Adult Social Care and Public Health Sub-Committee is due meet at Hove Town Hall at 4pm on Tuesday (7 September). The meeting is scheduled to be webcast on the council’s website.
