David Pearson CBE, Chair of the Social Care COVID-19 Support Taskforce, explains the background to its formation and introduces its final report, advice and recommendations.
A test of any country is the degree to which it supports and enables those who need care and support to stay safe and lead the best lives they can. The government established the taskforce at a time of the most unprecedented attack on the health and economic wellbeing of the country and large parts of the world.
The challenge is significant. The measures require investment by government and policy initiatives rapidly translated into action in the 38,200 settings in which people in this country receive their care and support.
Responding to this challenge, for the rest of the pandemic will require a collective leadership effort from the government and all parts of a diverse sector and other public services including the NHS, acting together as one. The taskforce was encouraged, by the government, to be ambitious and bold. The report, advice and recommendations are therefore wide-ranging.
The taskforce consists of leaders from across government and from the sector, representing many of the very organisations and specialisms that are an essential part of the make-up of any social care sector. People working on a daily basis with the taskforce have been drawn from across every part of the sector.
The organisations and their leaders have responded to urgent requests for information, views and analysis in support of the objectives of the taskforce on particular pieces of work and evidence. This includes the chairs and participants of the advisory groups who have convened at short notice to provide evidence and advice on what is needed for the coming months and for the duration of this pandemic. I am very grateful for the level of goodwill and assistance that has been offered to the taskforce and its ambition.
Technical skill, equipment and technology are an essential part of a modern social care system, but its effectiveness is determined largely by the people who work in it. We have all heard about the struggles of grappling with the virus, resources, the guidance and making the rapid adjustment to the way that services are delivered and new priorities.
We know more about the virus than we did at the beginning of the pandemic, gaining more knowledge every day. It is our collective responsibility to ensure we use the experiences, knowledge and understanding gained so far this year to ensure that the sector is resilient in dealing with what lies ahead.
We have heard about the many extraordinary acts of kindness, commitment and determination to ensure that people's needs are met in very unusual and demanding circumstances by those working in social care. This will be required in large measure during the next phases.
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